NADA Provisionally Suspends Army Coach Mohd. Yunus Khan

The National Anti-Doping Agency has provisionally suspended Indian long- and middle-distance running coach Mohd. Yunus Khan, who works with the Army Sports Institute in Pune. Khan appears on NADA’s provisionally suspended list under Article 2.9, concerning complicity or attempted complicity in an anti-doping rule violation.

The provisional suspension is a significant development for Indian athletics because Khan has worked with a number of Army athletes, including prominent long-distance runners Gulveer Singh and Sawan Barwal. The matter will now proceed through NADA’s hearing process, with the charge relating to an alleged role in an anti-doping violation rather than a failed test.

Article 2.9 charge and NADA process

According to the National Anti-Doping Rules, Article 2.9 covers assisting, encouraging, aiding, abetting, conspiring, covering up, or any other form of intentional complicity or attempted complicity involving an anti-doping rule violation. It can also apply in connection with an attempted anti-doping rule violation or a violation of Article 10.14.1 by another person.

In Khan’s case, the listing specifies complicity or attempted complicity. The available information does not describe the allegation as a failed test by the coach. Instead, the provisionally suspended status means the case is set to be considered through NADA’s hearing process.

Under the National Anti-Doping Rules, an Article 2.9 offence can result in a period of ineligibility from two years to a lifetime ban, depending on the severity of the case. Any final outcome in Khan’s case will therefore depend on the anti-doping process and the determination made after the hearing.

Khan has been associated with distance running at the Army Sports Institute in Pune. Among the athletes he has previously worked with are Gulveer Singh, a Commonwealth and Asian Games medalist in long-distance running, and Sawan Barwal, a marathon record holder and Asian Games silver medalist.

The case places attention on the responsibilities of coaches and support personnel within anti-doping rules. Article 2.9 is framed around actions connected to another person’s potential anti-doping violation, rather than only the presence of a prohibited substance in an athlete’s test sample.

Context for Indian athletics

The provisional suspension comes after another athletics coaching case earlier this year. Athletics coach Rakesh Kumar was given a lifetime ban in August under Article 2.8, which concerns the administration or attempted administration of prohibited substances to athletes.

The two cases involve different provisions of the anti-doping rules. Kumar’s penalty was reported under Article 2.8, while Khan’s provisional suspension is under Article 2.9. Khan’s matter remains subject to the NADA hearing process, and the provisional suspension should not be presented as a final sanction.

For now, NADA’s list records Khan as provisionally suspended while the alleged Article 2.9 violation is addressed. The case is consequential given his role at the Army Sports Institute and his work with athletes who have featured prominently in Indian distance running. Further clarity on the charge and any sanction will depend on the outcome of the proceedings.