Doping Cases on the Rise in Indian Sports

October 22, 2026

India is a developing country. We claim that we have made significant progress in the last decade and a half, moving India from 11th to 4th place in the world’s economic power rankings. Soon, India will also achieve 3rd place. Furthermore, India’s achievements in the sports world are widely discussed. Currently, India is staking its claim to host the 2036 Olympics. Meanwhile, to tarnish the reputation of our sports world, news of our athletes winning medals with the help of doping is being spread. Some sports journalists claim that the Indian sports world has been afflicted by doping. Doping cases have increased over the past five years. While there were 59 cases in 2020, the number reached 278 in 2024. This is a deeply worrying statistic that has given athletes and sports administration sleepless nights. While our athletes are working tirelessly to win medals at the international level, the growing allegations of doping and its illegal trade are eroding the credibility of our country’s sports. We wouldn’t speculate that this is being done to hinder India’s hosting of the Olympics, but it is true that the use of banned substances under doping has certainly increased among athletes. On August 13, 2026, India’s Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports presented a report conceding that doping had increased. The reasons for this increase, whether due to administrative laxity or a weakened anti-doping system, are under investigation. A major setback came from the Athletics Integrity Unit, which classified India as Category A. Following this, the Athletics Federation of India imposed stricter requirements for compliance and monitoring of the India Anti-Doping Rules. Efforts are underway to ensure that global sports bodies do not lose confidence in the internal systems of Indian sports administration. Sadly, there has been a significant increase in doping cases among athletes since 2020. In 2025, 148 athletes were found guilty. The World AntiDoping Agency has also expressed concern, but the Indian government maintains that these doping figures are exaggerated. Our sample testing, scientific risk assessment, athlete performance tracking, and intelligence infrastructure are of the highest standard, and India is faithfully adhering to the World Anti-Doping Code.