File photo of Pramod Bhagat© Instagram
The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has announced that India's Tokyo 2020 Paralympic gold medal winner Pramod Bhagat has been suspended for a period of 18 months for breaching the anti-doping regulations. As a result of the suspension, Pramod will miss the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
"On 1 March 2024, the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) Anti-Doping Division found Bhagat in breach of the BWF anti-doping regulations for committing three whereabouts failures within 12 months," a BWF statement read.
"Bhagat, an SL3 athlete, appealed this decision to the CAS Appeals Division. On 29 July 2024, the CAS Appeals Division dismissed the Bhagat's appeal and confirmed the CAS Anti-Doping Division decision of 1 March 2024," the statement added.
— H A R S H (@Blazie_Harsh) August 13, 2024Pramod Bhagat, the 2020 Paralympics SL3 champion is serving 18 months of suspension due to whereabouts failure
So now, Manoj Sarkar ( last time) & Nitesh Kumar (Asian Para Games ) will represent India in SL3 .
Article from BWF @Badminton7799 @anshul_chavhan pic.twitter.com/iQjJLVPRal
Bhagat won a gold medal at the Tokyo Paralympics in men's singles SL3 category, beating Daniel Bethell of Great Britain in the final.
The 35-year-old Bhagat came from behind in the Tokyo Paralympics final to beat his arch-rival 14-21, 21-15, 21-15 in a gruelling contest which lasted for about an hour and 40 minutes.
In the process, Bhagat won his fourth singles world title, having previously won the same medal thrice in 2015, 2019, and 2022. He also has a men's doubles gold medal to his name at the global championships from the 2013 campaign. But, he won't be able to defend his titles this time around.