NEW DELHI : Indian athletes will face stricter anti-doping requirements after World Athletics placed the Athletics Federation of India in its highest-risk category, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said on Monday.
India ranked among the top two countries for anti-doping rule violations between 2022 and 2025, prompting the AIU board to move the federation from Category B to Category A, a designation reserved for the highest-risk cases.
Category A federations are subject to stricter obligations, including minimum testing thresholds for national-team athletes and enhanced monitoring.
“The doping situation in India has been high-risk for a long time and, unfortunately, the quality of the domestic anti-doping programme is simply not proportionate to the doping risk,” AIU chairman David Howman said in a statement.
World Anti-Doping Agency president Witold Banka, who visited India last week, described the easy availability of performance-enhancing drugs as a “serious problem” and held talks with federal police officials to help disrupt supply chains.
AFI spokesperson Adille Sumariwalla said the federation was working with the AIU, the sports ministry and the National Anti-Doping Agency to address the issue.
“AFI has got a strong plan and we are all for criminalising doping in this country,” Sumariwalla told Reuters. “There’s nothing wrong in more scrutiny. More athletes are getting caught in India because more tests are being conducted.
“We are fighting it tooth and nail. The crooks and criminals doing it should be stopped by police.”
The issue has also drawn attention at the highest levels, with Indian officials previously urged at talks with the International Olympic Committee to tackle doping concerns as part of efforts to strengthen future Olympic bids.
