India’s two-time Olympic medallist, Neeraj Chopra, shared his views on growing concerns about doping among Indian athletes in a recent interview. He mentioned that doping is a substantial issue in India. And advised his fellow athletes to refrain from engaging in any doping activities to gain any unfair advantage.
His statement comes on the back of a recent report revealed by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). According to a 10-year study conducted by WADA, India emerged as the second-worst country after Russia for positive doping cases among minor athletes.
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Chopra Concerned Over Doping, Asks Athletes to Work Hard
Chopra was talking to Lallantop, and when asked about the doping crisis in India, he shared his assessment of the issue.
“Totally, nowadays doping is a big problem in India among our athletes. I would like to tell them that once doping is in the mind, it gets hard in the future. They are unable to play at that level. They think that only doping can get them performance, but that is not the truth,” he said speaking to Lallantop.
“It is their hard work and self-belief, proper guidance from the coach will take you forward. Eat well, rest well and work hard. Do everything properly,” Chopra advised the athletes.
Chopra also stressed on the negative repercussions an athlete may have to endure if they get caught in a doping test. And requested the coaches to keep the athletes away from doping.
Chopra added: “To tell you the truth, once they dope, the dope test happens, and they get caught. They receive a ban of 2-4 years. There is no life in that. So if you want to play at a good level, the mindset of our athletes needs to be changed. I request the coaches to not tell them that doping will help them and keep them far away from it.”
The javelin thrower concluded his remarks by mentioning that if the country overcomes this issue, it will help improve the level of sports.
“I feel if this improves, our level of sports will become better. Nowadays what happens is that any kid who is good in sports, reaches a good level and then comes under doping. That is an issue. They also need to eat and drink outside carefully,” he added.
