Days after Yogeshwar Dutt’s 2012 London Olympics bronze medal was upgraded to silver as the late wrestler Besik Kudukhov failed dope test, the Indian in all probabilities will see his medal being converted into gold, reported Hindustan Times.
Toghrul Asgarov of Azerbaijan, who won gold in the 60kg Freestyle Wrestling category, has reportedly tested positive for consuming performance enhancing drugs and if Yogeshwar’s samples come out clean, then the grappler is in for a golden treat.
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is yet to officially communicate the news of Asgarov’s positive dope test to the United World Wrestling (UWW), the governing body of Olympic wrestling.
Two-time Olympic medallist Kudukhov died in a car crash in southern Russia in 2013. It was only under WADA’s policy of “legacy testing” or “retrospective testing”, where samples of athletes are kept in deep freeze up to 10 years and being tested time and again with the upgradation of testing techniques that Kudukhov and Asgarov were found to be drug cheats and Dutt’s samples, taken during the 2012 Games, will also be tested before he is confirmed of the gold medal.
Incidentally, after receiving news of his bronze medal getting converted into a silver Yogeshwar expressed his desire that the medal should not be taken away from the late wrestler’s family.
