Doping is a major issue in India: Athletics Integrity Unit moves the nation from Category B to Category A on the watch list

The Athletics Federation of India (AFI) has been moved into the highest anti-doping risk tier under World Athletics rules. This is a decision that underscores what the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) describes as a persistently “extremely high” doping risk within the country.

Reclassified from ‘Category B’ to ‘Category A’ under Rule 15, India now faces stricter compliance demands, including enhanced minimum testing requirements for national team athletes. The shift follows a pattern that is difficult to ignore: India has ranked among the top two nations globally for Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) every year from 2022 through 2025. The figures tell a blunt story. There were 48 cases in 2022, 63 in 2023, 71 in 2024, and 30 already recorded in 2025, with final totals expected to rise as reporting lags catch up.

AIU Chair David Howman did not soften the assessment. India’s anti-doping environment, he said, has long been “high-risk,” and the domestic system has yet to match that reality with a proportionate response. While the AFI has pushed for reform, progress has been limited. The AIU, as it has elsewhere, intends to apply pressure alongside partnership, working with the national federation while tightening oversight.

There is, however, a contrasting narrative. Bahrain Athletics Association (BAA) is on track to move in the opposite direction. Following what the AIU describes as “vast improvement,” Bahrain is set to be downgraded from ‘Category A’ to ‘Category B’ in 2027, provided current standards hold through 2026. Key to that turnaround: the establishment of an independent national anti-doping organization, expanded testing pools, meaningful out-of-competition controls, and more rigorous athlete monitoring. For both domestically and abroad. It’s a reminder that reform, while difficult, is achievable when backed by structural change.

Elsewhere, the AIU has taken a more targeted approach. Botswana, Peru, and Cuba are all currently ‘Category B’ federations. They will face minimum testing obligations tied to upcoming global events, including the World Relays, Race Walking Championships, and the 2027 World Championships in Beijing. These measures are less about punitive classification and more about addressing gaps, specifically, inconsistent or insufficient testing at the national level.

Howman pointed to repeated warnings issued to Botswana, alongside rising international performances, as justification for intervention. Peru, meanwhile, has regressed after a temporary improvement tied to the Paris Olympic cycle, slipping back toward previously inadequate testing levels. Cuba’s case is equally stark: in the lead-up to the Tokyo World Championships, it recorded the highest proportion of athletes among the top 40 nations with zero out-of-competition tests, while overall national testing dropped by half compared to the Paris build-up.

The requirement is straightforward, if not easily met: athletes from these federations must undergo at least three out-of-competition tests ahead of major competitions to be deemed eligible.

Since its introduction in 2019, Rule 15 has functioned as both a framework and a lever—holding national federations accountable for the credibility of their anti-doping systems. The message from the AIU is increasingly clear: risk will be met with regulation, and where reform is possible, it will be expected.