Manjit Kaur quits professional athletics

Manjit Kaur, the star 400 metres runner from Punjab, has decided to quit professional athletics to concentrate on her job, which means that she’s out of contention for the London Olympics. This follows her repeated refusal to be tested for doping by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), says a report in The Tribune.

She had been summoned by the NADA’s Disciplinary Panel, which on Monday exonerated her of the charge of avoiding testing after just one personal hearing.

Sources confirmed to the Tribune that the panel took this decision after Manjit showed them a letter she’d written to the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) conveying her decision to quit athletics. The three-member NADA panel, headed by retired Justice Dinesh Dayal, took the view that after the athlete did not want to continue with the sport, she was under no obligation to be tested for doping. The decision of the panel does raise a surprise, as on one occasion she was part of the Indian core group when she evaded testing.

Meanwhile discus thrower Vikas Gowda who became the first Indian to win a medal in the prestigious IAAF Diamond League on Saturday, is finding it difficult to concentrate on his training for the Olympics after discovering that his dad and coach Shive Gowda’s name is missing from the list of trainers prepared by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) for accreditation, says a report in The Times Of India.

“My dad is my coach and it was disturbing to notice that his name was missing from the list of coaches. I’ve got a mail from AFI asking for my measurements for the blazer and kit but my dad has not got any such communication. I’m really disappointed,” said Vikas, one of India’s best hopes in London.