Sheena Varkey Faces Suspension After Positive Doping Test

Triple Jumper Sheena Varkey Suspended for Doping Violation

Sheena Varkey, a prominent triple jumper with numerous national accolades and international representation, has been suspended by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) following a positive test for a banned substance.

The 32-year-old athlete recently participated in the 2023 Asian Games held in Hangzhou.

According to a reliable source, "Sheena Varkey has been suspended," although specifics regarding the substance have not been disclosed.

Originating from Kerala, Varkey secured a silver medal at this year's Uttarakhand National Games and followed it up with a bronze at the Federation Cup. In 2018, she also earned a silver medal at the Asian Indoor Championships.

This incident adds to the troubling trend of doping violations among Indian athletes.

On August 11, Gagandeep Singh, a discus thrower who won gold at the National Games, was among several athletes who received three-year bans from NADA after admitting to their violations within 20 days of being charged.

Competing for Services, Singh achieved a gold medal in men's discus with a throw of 55.01m at the Uttarakhand National Games on February 12, but later tested positive for testosterone metabolites, leading to his provisional suspension.

According to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), India's positivity rate for banned substances in 2023 was recorded at 3.8%, with 214 Adverse Analytical Findings (AAF) from a total of 5,606 samples.

Out of these tests, 2,748 were conducted during competitions.

India's positivity rate is notably higher than that of countries like China, the USA, France, Germany, and Russia, all of which report a positivity rate of 1% or less.

WADA's data indicates that athletics has the highest number of positive cases in India, with 61 AAFs from 1,223 samples.