India continues to top the global list of athletes and support staff banned for doping and related offenses, according to the latest list released by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), news agency PTI reported.There are 162 names from India on the AIU list, the most of any country. Kenya ranks second with 148 cases and Russia ranks third with more than 60 cases.The list includes individuals suspended for doping violations. It also includes those found guilty of non-doping rule violations such as tampering, test evasion, trafficking or failure to provide whereabouts information, as these offenses carry the same penalties as doping violations.The Athletics Integrity Agency is an independent anti-doping agency established by World Athletics. It oversees international level athletes and their support staff.India overtook Kenya for the first time in April this year and maintained its lead when the list was released in June.In early April, World Athletics classified India as a country with an “extremely high” doping risk, after topping the list of track and field doping offenders for two consecutive years.Following the recent decision of the AIU Committee, the Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has moved from Category B to Category A under Article 15 of the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules.“Unfortunately, the quality of domestic anti-doping programs is simply not proportional to the risks of doping,” USFI President David Howman said in a press release.India has been one of the two countries with the highest number of anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs) in athletics from 2022 to 2025.According to AIU data, India recorded 48 ADRVs in 2022 (ranked second), 63 in 2023 (ranked second), 71 in 2024 (ranked first), and 30 ADRVs in 2025 (ranked first).Under the World Athletics Anti-Doping Code, the AIU Committee classifies member associations into different risk categories based on their doping records. Category A represents the highest risk, Category B represents moderate risk, and Category C represents low risk.Category A member federations must meet more stringent anti-doping requirements. This includes maintaining and implementing an annual testing program that complies with international testing and survey standards.The testing program must ensure that athletes selected for any World Athletics Series, Olympic or World Athletics X Games national team, as well as athletes who have not yet entered the internationally registered testing pool, are adequately tested.The AIU reviews each member federation’s categories every three years by examining factors such as the doping history of athletes and athlete support staff. However, it can change the federation’s category at any time during the three-year period.
