Pakistan suffered massively in various disciplines in recent years due to doping scandals which deprived the country of the services of so many solid players who fell prey to doping menace due to their negligence.

There are various conspiwracy theories about how athletes are forced to use drugs to enhance their performance. And almost every theory has substance in it. It’s a massive challenge for our sports authorities to check this menace as the way our sports system is being governed Pakistan can lose many players in future due to this criminal act which is against the very spirit of the sports.

During informal interviews with players who have fallen to this menace in recent months I came to know that they used medicines on their own.

They also shared with this correspondent some medical stores from where they get medicines in order to enhance their power so that they could click without knowing whether the medicines have any substance which is on the banned list of substances.

The players say that even their coaches are unaware of the prohibited substances. The players are left unbridled during the camps and whatever they use nobody cares.

Even during camps players are forced to go outside the hostel and take their meals at hotels.

Supplements are very important for players but the authorities cannot provide them during national camps because of financial issues.

There is a PSB doctor who keeps the athletes informed about what they should use and what they should not use.

An athlete told me that they use whatever they feel suitable to enhance their power. There is nobody to guide them.

Mostly the issue prevails at the departmental level. Departments promote their athletes mostly on the basis of their performances in the National Games and we saw recently that four top-rated athletes were handed three-year bans for having failed dope tests during the 34th National Games in Quetta.

Then a handful of more athletes failed dope tests which were conducted before Pakistan contingent’s departure for China to feature in the Hangzhou Asian Games.

One kabaddi player also failed a dope test conducted during the Asian Games. So things are abysmal and we need to work against this menace on war-footing. Some athletes have fallen prey to this menace after taking supplements on the advice of their junior colleagues.

Although doping seminars are regularly conducted it is evident that these also have failed to leave any impact and we see our players in different disciplines being banned because of the doping violations.

We should correct the system otherwise we will face big such issues in future.

We have lost several fine weightlifters, wrestlers, a number of athletes and kabaddi players because of this issue during the last few years.

The major responsibility rests on the shoulders of the clubs, departments and national federations to work for the eradication of this menace.

The issue is that even our world level athletes don’t take the sort of care which they should. The real thing is that most of the athletes come from poor strata of society and they are mostly uneducated and don’t know what they should use and what they should not use.

Moreover there is no proper system which could ensure players injuries are treated. In Pakistan even top players are left unattended when they get injured and then they go from pillar to post to seek their treatment on their own by spending heavily from their own pocket.

An athlete, who has served a marathon suspension, told me when he was injured he used to eat everything as his main aim was to recover as sport was his bread and butter.

Our federations and state should devise a strategy and should ensure that the players, especially those who serve Pakistan, should be provided with every kind of medical facilities so that they could be properly treated when they get injured.

Massive dope tests in the national and departmental camps and during competitions are necessary if we are to check doping.

Another thing which I should mention here is that departments should allow their athletes to resume their sporting careers without any hesitation once they complete their ban.

According to a WADA rule an athlete can attend training camp during his or her last two months period of ineligibility.

Let’s fight against this menace together and support our athletes and guide them at every step of their careers.

73.alam@gmail.com