Days after stripping the dope-tainted athletes of the 32nd National Games of their medals/positions, the Indian Olympic Association vowed to eliminate the scourge of doping from Indian sports by 2005.
"Our motto is to have a dope free India by 2005," IOA president Suresh Kalmadi told reporters in Delhi on Wednesday.
"Punjab was an educational exercise. But we are very serious about countering the doping menace in the country. We have taken away the medals of the guilty athletes from the 32nd National Games.
"This is only the first step to ensure a dope free sports atmosphere in the country.
"The media has been writing about coaches not coming under the scrutiny in the whole process, so without wanting to adversely affect their morale, I would like to add we will keep a watch on them too," he said.
Kalmadi said the IOA, along with the Sports Authority of India and various federations, would ensure that dope testing takes place not just during competitions but also at national camps.
"We will make all efforts to remove this menace. We will go and test the athletes in the camps and even in their homes," the IOA president said.
Kalmadi, who was addressing a felicitation function for the Indian weightlifting team which won nine gold and three silver medals at the recently-concluded Commonwealth championships in Tonga, further said that an International Olympic Committee standard dope laboratory will be put in place for the Afro-Asian Games later this year.
Newly-appointed president of the Indian Weightlifting Federation H J Dora said players and coaches should be educated about the menace of doping.
"The IWF will run programmes to educate the lifters as well the coaches on the menace of doping so that we don't get into this muddle. We have enormous talent in the country and there is no reason why we should turn to taking banned drugs to come out with world class performances," he said.
UNI
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