Chennai: Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu wants to wage war on dope cheats. But the methods it has adopted have raised eyebrows.
There is a feeling in the athletic community that SDAT may have gone overboard to keep dope offenders out of the ongoing A.L. Mudaliar intercollege meet at the Nehru Stadium.
“Asking security guards who have no qualification whatsoever in identifying banned substances to check the bag of every athlete entering the Nehru Stadium is not the right way,“ one coach raged.
“Doping should be driven out of sports. At the same time athletes can't be humiliated. For the security guards, even vitamin tablets are perfor mance-enhancing drugs. The methods are naive and simplistic.“
The security guards standing outside the main gate of the Nehru Stadium at Periamet on Wednesday scrutinised the bags of all those entering the stadium be it an athlete, parent or journalist. “Our superiors have instructed us to check for any medicines, syringes or other banned substances carried by anyone into the stadium,“ said one security guard. Even those carrying a cough syrup or tablets for the cold or pain-relieving sprays are stopped at the gate. If the guards find anyone with any medicine they take them to SDAT officials for an enquiry.
On condition of anonymity many coaches expressed their views on the sensitive issue. One of the coaches at the scene said: “How do these people know whether the substance is banned or not? I haven't seen a doctor at the gate. A few athletes have been questioned as if they are already guilty.“
One girl who fell prey to the over enthusiastic attitude of the officials said she was questioned on the suspicion of pos sessing a banned substance. “I had a supplement tablet which is not on the list of banned items and I was stopped by the guards. I was then taken to the officials.
They got hold of my ID card and I was made to stand outside as if I had been found guilty of doping.
“My parents came and rescued me. Finally, I was allowed to take part in the meet. I felt embarrassed,” she said.
The acting director of physical education of the University of Madras, who are organising the meet, welcomed SDAT’s decision to weed out those who attempt to use
performance-enhancing drugs inside the stadium.
“The SDAT officials had informed us in advance.
In turn, we had relayed the information to all the physical directors of the participating colleges. It is a good initiative and it will take time to get streamlined,” he said.
Another physical director seconded the University of Madras official. He said the chances for athletes to use a banned substance inside the stadium are more and he has witnessed many such cases.
“They should be dealt with severely and I feel this is a step in the right direction,” he added.
Another coach said the SDAT’s move had clearly instilled fear in male athletes. “At the same time, women athletes and some parents feel harassed. There are scientific methods to catch dope users by evaluating blood and urine samples.
For that, National Anti Doping Agency’s help should be sought,” he added.
K. Rajaraman, membersecretary of the SDAT, said stringent measures are being taken to stop athletes from using banned substance within the Nehru Stadium.
“This has got nothing to do with Nada. In the past we found so many syringes inside the restrooms. We want to eliminate such instances. We have seized substances from a few athletes that we suspect of being something against the nature of the sport. We will send those to appropriate agencies for further examination. When we conduct athletic meets, we would invite Nada to conduct tests on individuals,” he said.
There is nothing wrong in SDAT’s motive but the way it’s implementing its anti-doping crusade has raised many people’s hackles.
