Judoka Tulika Maan suspended from Glasgow Commonwealth Games: Why the silver medallist is facing disciplinary action

New Delhi: Birmingham Commonwealth Games silver-medallist judoka Tulika Maan has been withdrawn from the ongoing Glasgow edition after being handed a provisional suspension by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) for three whereabouts failures in the last 12 months.

Maan had won silver in the +78kg category in the 2022 edition and she was a strong medal prospect in Glasgow as well.

"She has committed three whereabouts failures in a 12-month period and NADA has sent notice to her. So, she will be withdrawn from the team," a judo coach told PTI on conditions of anonymity. On Thursday, another judoka, Arun Kumar (-73kg) was withdrawn for failing an out-of-competition dope test.


The Indian judo team has not yet left for the Games as its competition schedule will kick off on July 31. The judokas are scheduled to depart on July 27.

A whereabouts failure is an anti-doping compliance issue that can arise from either filing failures or missed tests. A filing failure occurs when an athlete does not submit or update the mandatory location information required for out-of-competition testing. A missed test is recorded when a doping control officer is unable to locate the athlete during the declared 60-minute testing window. Under anti-doping rules, any combination of three filing failures and/or missed tests within a 12-month period constitutes an anti-doping rule violation and can attract a standard two-year suspension, unless the athlete successfully challenges the case.

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Tulika's provisional suspension is another setback to India's Commonwealth Games preparations. With her omission, the Indian contingent has been reduced to 122 athletes, and the heavyweight judoka is set to miss the Glasgow Games. The Indian judo team is scheduled to depart for Glasgow on July 27, with competitions beginning on July 31.

The 27-year-old has been one of India's leading judokas over the past decade. Raised by her mother, Delhi Police sub-inspector Amrita, after losing her father at a young age, Tulika switched from football to judo at the age of eight and rose through the ranks under coach Yashpal Solanki.

Her breakthrough came at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, where she won a silver medal in the women's +78kg category, becoming only the second Indian judoka to achieve the feat. She later overcame a serious knee injury to qualify for the Paris Olympics, where she represented India as the country's lone judoka.

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The provisional suspension now casts uncertainty over the future of one of India's most accomplished judokas. The final outcome will depend on the proceedings before the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA). If the charge is upheld, Tulika could face a suspension of up to two years, dealing a major blow to both her career and India's medal prospects at future international events.