Afghan Judoka Mohammad Samim Faizad Faces Doping Disqualification at Paris Olympics

Afghanistan Judoka Faces Doping Disqualification at Paris Olympics

In a significant doping scandal that has emerged from the Paris Olympics, Afghan judoka Mohammad Samim Faizad has tested positive for the anabolic steroid stanozolol, a substance infamously linked to the notorious doping case of sprinter Ben Johnson during the 1988 Seoul Olympics. The International Testing Agency (ITA) announced the positive test result on Saturday, revealing that Faizad provided a sample during his opening bout.

Faizad, a 21-year-old athlete, competed in the men’s 81-kilogram judo category but unfortunately lost his only match to Austria’s Wachid Borchashvili on Tuesday. Following the positive test result, he has been provisionally disqualified from the Olympics. The ITA stated, “The athlete has been informed of the case and has been provisionally suspended until the resolution of the matter in line with the World Anti-Doping Code and the IOC Anti-Doping Rules applicable to the Olympic Games Paris 2024.”

This provisional suspension means that Faizad is barred from all competitive activities, including competing, training, coaching, or participating in any Olympic-related events during the Paris 2024 Summer Games.

Remarkably, Faizad was the only athlete on the Afghan team competing from within Afghanistan, which comprised a total of three men and three women. This situation highlights the ongoing challenges faced by athletes from the region.

The first athlete to face suspension from the Paris Summer Games for doping violations was Iraq’s Sajjad Sehen, another judoka. Sehen tested positive on July 23 for the banned anabolic steroids methandienone and boldenone following a preliminary test match.

The implications of these doping cases extend beyond individual athletes, raising questions about the integrity of sports and the efforts to maintain fair competition on the world stage.