Boxing latest: Manju Wanniarachchi reported positive in the drug test
The Kandy born bantamweight boxer Manju Wanniarachchi from Sri Lanka has reported positive for the banned steroid nandrolone as a result of which he will probably lose his country’s maiden gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in seven decades.
Hemasiri Fernando, who is the President of the National Olympic Committee in Sri Lanka, commented on Monday that a letter from the anti-doping committee of the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi reflected that Manju’s urine sample contained an excessive amount
of Nandrolone, a banned performance enhancing drug.
Manju surpassed Welshman Sean McGoldrick on points in the multi-discipline Common wealth Games in New Delhi that started from Oct, 3rd to put a full stop to his nation’s seventy two years wait for a gold medal, however, the celebrations look to be
short-lived after the five foot three inches returned a positive drugs test.
Hemasiri further said that they have given the letter to the 31-year-old professional boxer from Sri Lanka.
"It is now up to the national boxing Association officials whether Wanniarachchi should request for another sample to be tested. If that sample is also positive, Wanniarachchi will lose his gold medal and faces a ban from boxing," Fernando reflected.
Wanniarachchi, on the other hand, claims that he failed the test as a result of asthma medication that he was taking for the last few months. The boxer can make a request for another test, however, in case it turns out to be positive as well then he will
definitely lose his gold medal won at the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi.
"We have been made to understand that Wanniarachchi is an innocent victim of this sad state of affairs. He was injected with this drug six months ago having obtained it from a medical practitioner. If that is the case, we will try to mitigate with the World
Anti-Doping Agency for a lenient punishment,” said Fernando on Monday.
The 31-year-old Manju will be banned for two complete years from the professional game of boxing if the second sample test returns a positive result with Hemasiri adding that his team has already taken hold of the gold and are now waiting for the result
of the ‘B’ sample.
The Sri Lankan has now registered his name as the fifth player to fail a test at the Common wealth Games in New Delhi, along with a race walker from India and three trace runners from Nigeria.
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