HANGZHOU: At least four Indian athletes, who landed here after an 18-hour journey, were in for a surprise as the International Testing Agency (ITA) officials whisked them away for dope tests the moment they stepped out of the team bus at the entrance of the Asian Games Village.
Unlike in the past, the athletes were given no time to rest and relax and were not allowed to take their luggage from the team bus. Among those who were subjected to surprise tests were defending men's shot put champion Tajinderpal Singh Toor, Asian silver medallist in women's long just Shaili Singh and 800m runner Mohammed Afsal. "It was a bit harsh to subject the athletes to dope tests without allowing them any time to relax. They used to conduct in-competition tests but then the athletes got more time. Here the athletes were dehydrated and struggled even to provide the required quantity of the urine sample," a top coach said.
