The International Testing Agency (ITA) has imposed a four-year ban on wrestler Ali Asad following a ruling on his use of performance-enhancing drugs. Asad, who was stripped of his bronze medal from the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games, was found to have violated anti-doping rules.
The decision, announced this week, comes after an extensive investigation. The ITA’s letter to Asad detailed the violation, citing the presence of Metandienone metabolites in his sample collected on August 6, 2022, during an in-competition anti-doping control.
The letter also noted that Asad was warned that failure to respond by the specified deadline would result in a waiver of his right to a hearing and acceptance of the consequences, including the four-year ban and disqualification of results.
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The ITA confirmed that the Pakistan Wrestling Federation (PWF) had properly notified Asad, who failed to reply within the given timeframe. As a result, the ITA has affirmed that the athlete committed a doping rule violation under Article 2.1 and/or Article 2.2, with a four-year period of ineligibility starting from October 31, 2022, when Asad began serving a provisional suspension.
During this period, Asad is barred from participating in any capacity in competitions or activities organized by member organisations or funded by governmental agencies, except for authorized anti-doping education or rehabilitation programs.
The ITA noted that the ineligibility period could be adjusted based on the athlete’s degree of fault and other factors.
Asad, who clinched a bronze medal at the Birmingham Games with a decisive 11-0 victory over Singh, had previously denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. In a statement to The News in 2022, Asad expressed his disbelief over the positive test results and maintained that he had never intentionally used such substances.
