Pramod Bhagat, India’s para shuttler who won a gold medal at the Tokyo Paralympics 2020, will not be able to compete in the Paris Paralympics 2024 as he has been suspended for 18 months after being found guilty of breaching the anti-doping regulations, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) announced in a statement.
The Badminton World Federation (BWF) announced in an official statement that the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) found Bhagat in violation of BWF's anti-doping rules for missing three drug test whereabouts reports in a year. His appeal was rejected on July 29, 2024, and the suspension is now in effect.
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"The Badminton World Federation (BWF) can confirm India’s Tokyo 2020 Paralympic champion Pramod Bhagat has been suspended for a period of 18 months and will miss the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. On 1 March 2024, the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) Anti-Doping Division found Bhagat in breach of the BWF anti-doping regulations for committing three whereabouts failures within 12 months.
"On 29 July 2024, the CAS Appeals Division dismissed Bhagat’s appeal and confirmed the CAS Anti-Doping Division decision of 1 March 2024. His period of ineligibility is now in effect," reads the statement by the BWF.
Pramod Bhagat made history by winning the gold medal in the men’s singles SL3 category at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, where he defeated Great Britain’s Daniel Bethell. This achievement was the first gold medal for India in badminton at the Paralympics and contributed to India's fourth gold medal at the Tokyo Paralympics. It also marked a significant milestone in the history of Indian para-badminton.
Bhagat has also won a gold medal in the men's doubles at the global championships from the 2013 campaign.