ITA imposes 4-year ban on wrestler Ali

ISLAMABAD: The International Testing Agency (ITA) has imposed a four-year ban on wrestler Ali Asad for using performance-enhancing drugs that stripped him of the bronze medal during the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.

The ruling on his case came this week following years of investigation. In a letter addressed to Ali just a few days back, the ITA asserted: “You had committed an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV) pursuant Article 2.1 and/or Article 2.2 of the UWW ADR for the presence of Metandienone metabolites in sample that you provided on August 6, 2022 during an in-competition anti-doping control at the Commonwealth Games.You were also expressly informed that if you did not provide a response within the given deadline, you would be deemed to have waived your right for a hearing and to have accepted the consequences of the ADRV as mandated by Article 8.3.2 decision of imposing a four-year period of ineligibility and disqualification of competitive results would then be issued.”

The ITA further added that the Pakistan Wrestling Federation (PWF) has confirmed that you (Ali Asad) had received the notification and had been duly informed of its contents.

“You failed to reply to the notification within the given deadline.” The ITA has confirmed that the athlete is found to have committed an anti-doping rule violation under Article 2.1 and/or Article 2.

“The applicable period of Ineligibility is 4 years. Start of ineligibility period considering that the athlete has been serving a mandatory provisional suspension since October 31, 2022.”

During the period of ineligibility, the athlete cannot participate in any capacity in a competition or activity (other than authorized anti-doping education or rehabilitation programs) authorized or organized by any signatory’s member organization, or a club or other member organization or any elite or national- level sporting activity funded by a governmental agency.” It is further said that the new period of ineligibility may be adjusted based on the athlete’s degree of fault and other circumstances.

Ali Asad -- a bronze medalist at the Birmingham -- was a brilliant wrestler during his bronze medal fight as he rattled Singh by gripping him by his legs and rolling him out of the mat to gain 10 points.

The final score read 11-0 and Asad got his hands on a bronze medal at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games. Even in 2022 when ‘The News’ talked to Ali Asad, he claimed that he never had used anything deliberately. “It is nothing less than a shock for me as my two tests have turned positive. I have never used any performance-enhancing drug in my life,” he claimed at that time.