Indian athletics is facing another setback as javelin thrower Shivpal Singh is facing a potential eight-year ban after failing a drug test for the second time in his career. The 29-year-old, who represented India at the Tokyo Olympics, has been provisionally suspended after testing positive for methandienone, a banned performance-enhancing steroid.

Singh's sample was collected earlier this year during an out-of-competition test while he was training at the National Centre of Excellence in Patiala, under the guidance of India's javelin coach Sergey Makarov. This development comes after Singh skipped the Federation Senior Athletics Championships in Kochi in April.

This is not the first time the javelin thrower has been caught in a doping web. In 2021, Singh also tested positive for methandienone, which led to a four-year ban by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA). However, the ban was later reduced to one year in January 2023 after Singh successfully argued that the violation stemmed from a contaminated supplement.

According to the rules of both NADA and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), a second doping violation can result in a maximum ban of eight years, which could effectively end Singh's athletic career.

Despite the allegations, Singh has denied any wrongdoing. In an interview with The Tribune, he stated that he is not under any suspension and is still training in Patiala. He explained his absence from the Federation Championships by saying that he was not throwing well enough to compete.

However, Athletics Federation of India (AFI) President Adille Sumariwalla has contradicted Singh's claims, stating that the athlete is not present at the national camp in Patiala. Sources also revealed that Singh was removed from the National Centre of Excellence following a directive from the Sports Authority of India (SAI) on April 23.

Singh's best achievement in his career came at the 2019 Asian Championships in Doha, where he won a silver medal with a personal best throw of 86.23m. He finished 27th at the Tokyo Olympics.

If proven guilty, this ban would be a significant blow to Singh's career, potentially ending his time as a competitive athlete. This case also brings up concerns about doping in Indian athletics.