Training has been suspended across Sports Authority of India (SAI) centres since mid-March to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. Mirabai Chanu, on Monday, requested Sports Minster Kiren Rijiju to allow resumption of training at the earliest. Weigtlifting national coach Vijay Sharma said social distancing can be ensured at the training hall in Patiala.
Bizarre it may sound, but Indian officials on Thursday claimed the four weightlifters disqualified from the Nanjing Youth Asian Games were allowed to take part in their respective events and only their results were not considered for medals.
Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal's revelations came just a few days after India has been placed at the third spot in worldwide dope violation in 2014 in a report published by World Anti-Doping Agency.
Mirabai has been subjected to an astonishing 45 dope tests in the last four years but has come out clean each time.
The Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWF) has decided to impose a two-year ban on the coaches of all those weightlifters who tested positive for banned substances across different championships in the last few months.
Indian weightlifters Sivalingam Sathish Kumar and Saikhom Mirabai Chanu earned the right to compete at the Rio Olympics in men's and women's weight categories respectively after topping the selection trials. Selection trials were held in Patiala to choose one lifter each from men's and women's category across all weight divisions after India had earned two quota places for the Rio Games at Senior Asian Championships at Tashkent, Uzbekistan in April. Sathish earned the ticket for Rio after finishing on top among male lifters with a total of 336kg in 77kg weight division. He lifted 151kg in snatch and 185kg in clean & jerk.
Indian weightlifter Sanjita Chanu said she will challenge the provisional suspension imposed on her for allegedly failing a dope test, insisting that she is innocent.
Newly-crowned weightlifting world champion Saikhom Mirabai Chanu says she thought of quitting the sport after receiving flak for her failure to win a medal at the Rio Olympics.
Commonwealth Games gold medallist weightlifter Geeta Rani's confirmatory 'B' sample test has also returned positive for a banned substance and she is set to end her career in ignominy as she faces the prospect of a lengthy ban from the sport.
Commonwealth Games gold medallist weightlifter Sanjita Chanu has failed a dope test, the international federation said on Thursday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday.
The Sports Ministry dropped para-sports coach Satyanarayana from the list of this year's Dronacharya awardees due to a criminal case pending against him, but made no changes to the names recommended for the Khel Ratna and Arjuna awards.
The Baton, which will stay in India for two days on October 12 and 13, will not, however, be taken in a relay by sportspersons, as is done normally, following IOA's decision to curtail the events here as there will not be adeqaute security arrangements in view of the Dussehra festival.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
Away from the cricket field, it was a year in which Sania Mirza was unarguably the biggest success story with her staggering 10 titles on the Tour -- two of them Grand Slams.