Swapna Barman Provisionally Suspended After Positive Test

Asian Games gold-winning heptathlete Swapna Barman has been provisionally suspended by the National Anti Doping Agency after testing positive for the prohibited anabolic-androgenic steroid Boldenone. The disciplinary process will continue despite the 29-year-old’s recent retirement announcement, with Barman entitled to appear at a hearing and request testing of her B sample.

Barman’s name appeared on NADA’s latest list of provisionally suspended athletes. The suspension is not a final finding of guilt; the case remains subject to the agency’s due process and a formal hearing. A NADA source told PTI that retirement does not remove the possibility of sanctions if an athlete is found guilty following the proceedings.

The development concerns one of India’s most notable combined-events athletes. Barman became the country’s first heptathlete to win Asian Games gold when she finished first at the 2018 Jakarta Games, and she also represented India at the 2016 Olympic Games.

NADA process to continue after retirement

Barman announced her retirement earlier this month, saying that an injury-plagued body could no longer withstand the demands of competition. However, the NADA source said the disciplinary matter must still be handled through the prescribed process.

According to the source, Barman remains provisionally suspended and will have to attend a hearing if required. She can also seek a B sample test. Should she decide to return to competition in the future, any sanction imposed after the formal process would remain in force, the source said.

The substance named in the report is Boldenone, an anabolic-androgenic steroid. The source article states that it has no medicinal use for the human body and is known to decrease testosterone levels. In Barman’s case, the substance was detected using Gas Chromatography-Combustion-Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry, an analytical method used to distinguish natural hormones from synthetic ones.

The provisional suspension places immediate focus on the procedural stage of the case rather than a final outcome. The hearing and any B sample request will be central to the next steps, while NADA considers the matter under its anti-doping framework.

Other sanctions in NADA’s latest update

Barman was the highest-profile athlete named in the latest list, which also included sanctions involving hockey player Mayank Sharma and runner Sanjana Singh. Sharma received a four-year ban after failing an out-of-competition test last year. Sanjana, 19, was handed a five-year ban after testing positive for prohibited steroids last year.

Both Sharma and Sanjana had already been serving provisional suspensions. Sanjana had won gold in the women’s 1500m and 5000m at the SAAF Senior Athletics Championships last year.

For Barman, the case comes after a career that included a landmark result for Indian athletics. Her 2018 Asian Games victory in Jakarta remains her defining sporting achievement, while her Olympic appearance in 2016 established her among India’s leading heptathletes of her generation.

Her retirement announcement had appeared to mark the end of her competitive career, but the NADA proceedings mean the anti-doping case will now continue independently of that decision. Until the formal process is completed, Barman’s status remains a provisional suspension, with no final sanction stated in the report.