NEW DELHI (AP) — The Indian sports ministry has asked the national anti-doping body to conduct an out-of-competition test on a boxer after claims from police and local media he uses heroin.
The ministry says the unusual move is necessary because if the claims about Olympic bronze medalist Vijender Singh are true, it “may have a debilitating influence” on other athletes.
Singh, who won middleweight bronze at the 2008 Beijing Games, denies using drugs.
Athletes are normally tested for recreational drugs only during events, while out-of-competition tests are conducted for performance-enhancing substances.
Singh has refused police permission to undergo tests to establish whether he is linked to a batch of heroin worth more than $25 million that was confiscated from an international criminal network.
Punjab Police said Sunday that Singh has been a regular user of heroin.
