Dutee Chand’s ban upheld: ADAP dismisses appeal against four-year suspension

Dutee had argued before the ADAP that her positive test for three selective androgen receptor modulators was caused by the supplements she had consumed on the advice of her physiotherapist.

FILE PHOTO: Dutee Chand’s appeal against a four-year suspension was dismissed by the Anti-Doping Appeal Panel. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

The Anti-Doping Appeal Panel (ADAP) dismissed sprinter Dutee Chand’s appeal against a four-year suspension slapped on her by the Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel (ADDP).

In a recent decision, the ADAP found no reason to interfere with ADDP’s decision ordered in August 2023. The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), while updating its list of sanctions, included the one on Dutee, stating it was given on May 16.

However, NADA did not give out the details of the order indicating that they might be made public.

NADA had also not published the ADDP decision of August 17, 2023, on the four-year suspension of the Odisha sprinter, the national record holder, who is a double silver winner in the 2018 Asian Games and a gold medallist in the 100m in the World University Games in 2019.

Dutee, who won her appeal in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in 2015 against her suspension on hyperandrogenism rules, had argued before the ADDP that her positive test for three selective androgen receptor modulators (SARMs) namely andarine, ostarine and Ligandrol, was caused by the supplements she had consumed on the advice of her physiotherapist.

Dutee told the panel that she had not purchased the substance from the chemist’s shop while it was done by her manager. But the manager submitted that he himself had delegated the task to another person whose name he could not remember.

The manager told the ADDP that he had no knowledge about supplements and did not read the label of the package to find out whether there was any banned substance in it.

Significantly, the order mentions ‘drug’ and ‘supplement’ at various places, some in cross-examination of the witness (manager) and others randomly to describe the banned substances. The athlete had apparently been advised by her physiotherapist to take the banned substances in order to treat her groin pain.

Dutee’s counsel told the panel that she had not mentioned these substances on the doping control form at the time of the out-of-competition tests in Bhubaneshwar in December 2022. Two samples were taken on different occasions and both tested positive.

The apparent violations were clubbed to make it one charge that was finally adjudicated upon by the panel.

SARMs are not ingredients of any approved drugs in any country, as per the assessment of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). They are available, though, on the web.

Athletes have been warned of the health consequences of consuming SARMs that have similar properties as steroids.

Dutee’s four-year suspension will run from her provisional suspension date of 3 January 2023. She holds the 100m national record of 11.17s, set in 2021.