National record holder KM Deeksha fails dope test
Women’s 1500m national record holder and National Games silver medallist K M Deeksha has failed a dope test, according to sources.
The 27-year-old Deeksha, who has participated in just one competition this year in April, has tested positive for a banned substance. The nature of the substance and further details of her test is not known.
“Yes, it’s confirmed that she has failed a dope test,” a well-placed source told PTI without elaborating on the matter. Deeksha did not take part in the recent Federation Cup in Ranchi, which was mandatory for an athlete to get selected for the 2026 Commonwealth Games (July 23 to August 2) in Glasgow, unless he or she is exempted by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI).
The AFI gave “eligible athletes” another chance to achieve CWG qualification standards in their respective events during the Ludhiana-leg of the Indian Athletics Series scheduled for June 13. But the athletes should have taken part in the Federation Cup for their performances in the Ludhiana event to be considered for CWG selection.
Deeksha, an athlete in the NADA’s Registered Testing Pool, had clocked 4 minute 25.74 seconds to win the 1500m race at the Indian Open Athletics Series 2 in Jaipur on April 5. Her timing was also well outside the 4:05.09 seconds set by the AFI as qualifying standard for the CWG.
Her national record stands at 4:04.78, which she had clocked in May 2024 in an event in the USA.
India maintains top spot in AIU list of currently ineligible athletes
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India maintained its top position in the Athletics Integrity Unit’s (AIU) list of currently ineligible athletes with 154 suspended at the end of May 2026, up from 148, compared to Kenya’s 147 and Russia’s 65.
At the end of March, India had surpassed Kenya to top the AIU list of ineligible persons due to doping violations with 148 suspended track and field athletes, which was two more than the African nation.
AIU is an independent anti-doping watchdog established by the World Athletics. It has jurisdiction over international-level athletes and their support persons.
