India’s 1500m national record holder, KM Deeksha, who had earlier received a notice for an Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) and was subsequently included in NADA’s latest suspension list, has failed a second dope test.

After testing positive in an out-of-competition sample earlier this year, Deeksha’s in-competition sample has also returned positive for the same prohibited substance.

According to NADA’s testing data available on its website, Deeksha underwent an out-of-competition test on February 26, 2026, in Bhopal. The report indicated the presence of stanozolol, an anabolic steroid that has been used by some athletes to enhance performance. The substance is prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and athletics governing bodies.

She was later added to NADA’s latest suspension list. Deeksha confirmed to nnis Sports that she had requested a B-sample analysis following the initial positive test.

Now, nnis Sports has learned through sources that her in-competition sample, collected during the Indian Athletics Series–2 held in Jaipur in April, has also tested positive for the same substance.

Notably, the prohibited substance detected in both positive tests was stanozolol.

The women’s 800m at the Stockholm Diamond League 2026 produced one of the greatest middle-distance races in recent history as Switzerland’s Audrey Werro stormed to victory in a world-leading 1:53.98, defeating Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson and rewriting the record books.

In a thrilling head-to-head battle, Werro surged past Hodgkinson in the closing stages to become the first woman in nearly 43 years to break the 1:54 barrier. Her stunning performance not only set a new Diamond League record and Swiss national record but also made her the third-fastest woman in history over the distance.

Hodgkinson was far from disappointing. The British star clocked a personal best and national record of 1:54.33, a time that would have won almost any race in the world. Instead, she had to settle for second place behind a sensational Werro.

The race marked a dramatic turnaround in the emerging rivalry between the two athletes. Just a few months ago, Hodgkinson had comfortably defeated Werro to win the world indoor title in Toruń, with the Swiss athlete taking silver.

What makes Werro’s run even more remarkable is the scale of improvement. The 22-year-old entered the race with an outdoor personal best of 1:55.91 but sliced nearly two seconds off that mark in one extraordinary performance.

The Stockholm showdown has also reignited discussions about the long-standing world record of 1:53.28 set by Jarmila Kratochvílová in 1983. Werro’s 1:53.98 leaves her just 0.70 seconds shy of that mark, while Hodgkinson’s 1:54.33 further strengthens the belief that the women’s 800m could be entering a historic new era.

For athletics fans, the biggest takeaway may be that the women’s 800m is no longer a one-woman show. Hodgkinson entered 2026 as the clear favourite, but Werro’s breakthrough performance has announced the arrival of a serious challenger.

With both athletes still in their early twenties and the World Championships on the horizon, the rivalry between Audrey Werro and Keely Hodgkinson could become one of the defining stories of middle-distance running in the years ahead.

The Indian contingent at the U20 Asian Athletics Championships 2026 in Hong Kong finished second on the medals table with an impressive haul of 19 medals (10 gold, 5 silver and 4 bronze), one of the country’s best-ever performances at a major junior championships.

Here are five performances that stood out.

1) Pooja – The Night She Rewrote Indian Athletics History

Many athletes win gold medals. Very few rewrite history.

Pooja did both.

The young high jumper cleared 1.93m to win gold and break the Indian Senior Women’s National Record, becoming the highest-jumping Indian woman of all time.

What made it even more remarkable was how the drama unfolded. She first cleared 1.91m to improve her own U20 National Record and move to No. 2 on India’s all-time list. Then came 1.93m — and history.

The mark is the joint second-best performance in Asian U20 history and the highest jump by an Asian U20 athlete in nearly 27 years.

2) Nishchay – The 60-Metre Breakthrough

Nishchay’s 60.10m effort in the men’s discus earned him silver, but the medal was only part of the story.

The 17-year-old shattered the Indian U20 National Record, becoming only the second Indian junior ever to cross the 60-metre barrier and recording the first 60m-plus throw of his U20 career. The mark surpassed Ujjwal’s previous national record of 60.03m and also secured qualification for the World U20 Championships.

3) India’s Men’s 4x400m Relay Team – Record Breakers Under Pressure

Piyush Raj, Sayed Sabeer, Ranjith Kumar S and Mohammed Ashfaq combined to run 3:05.54, smashing the Indian U20 National Record in one of the fastest relay finals ever seen at the championships.

The quartet held off traditionally strong relay nations and finished ahead of Sri Lanka while competing in a race where the top five teams all clocked faster than the previous championship record.

4) Mogali Venkatram Reddy – A Champion’s Finish

The Andhra Pradesh athlete entered Hong Kong in excellent form and left as the Asian U20 champion after clocking a lifetime best of 1:48.27 to win the men’s 800m gold.

The 18-year-old has been steadily climbing through the ranks over the past two seasons, but this was his breakout moment on the continental stage. Calm, composed and clinical when it mattered most, Reddy showed the race intelligence and finishing speed that separate good athletes from champions.

5) Nikhil Chandrashekhar – The Gold Nobody Saw Coming

The men’s 3000m steeplechase produced one of India’s most thrilling victories of the championships.

For most of the race, Japan’s Yuu Kato looked in complete control. Nikhil Chandrashekhar simply refused to let him out of sight.

Then came the final 150 metres.

The Indian unleashed a stunning kick, overtook the long-time leader and sprinted away to claim gold in a huge lifetime best of 9:25.44. By the final straight, he was already celebrating.

Punjab sprinter Harjit Singh continued his impressive form this season, storming to victory in the men’s 100m at the ongoing Indian Athletics Series–8 with a blistering time of 10.17 seconds.

The race was run with a tailwind of +2.1 m/s, just above the legal limit of +2.0 m/s for record eligibility. While the mark will not be considered for record purposes, it nevertheless underlines the exceptional form that Harjit has displayed in recent weeks.

The performance comes just days after the Punjab athlete clocked 10.21 seconds at the Punjab State Athletics Championships, further establishing himself as one of the country’s most promising sprinters.

Harjit’s rise is also closely linked to one of Indian sprinting’s biggest success stories. The Punjab sprinter was a former training partner of India’s fastest man, Gurindervir Singh, with both athletes training under coach Happy Singh during their developmental years.

Coach Happy Singh played a significant role in shaping Gurindervir’s early sprinting career, and Harjit’s recent performances are a testament to the strong sprinting culture that has emerged from the training group.

With back-to-back fast times and growing confidence on the track, Harjit Singh is rapidly establishing himself as a sprinter to watch. If he can reproduce similar performances under legal wind conditions, he could soon find himself among the fastest Indian athletes in the country this season.

Seventeen-year-old Aditya Pisal of Maharashtra delivered a stunning performance at the ongoing Indian Athletics Series–8, sprinting to victory in the men’s U20 100m final with a remarkable time of 10.23 seconds.

Pisal’s clocking was significantly faster than the current Indian U20 national record of 10.35 seconds, held by Indian sprint star Gurindervir Singh. However, the performance will not be recognized as a national record due to excessive wind assistance.

The race was run with a tailwind of +3.5 m/s, well above the maximum allowable limit of +2.0 m/s for record purposes under World Athletics regulations. While the timing showcases Pisal’s exceptional speed and potential, it cannot be entered into the record books.

Despite the wind-aided conditions, the performance serves as a strong statement from one of India’s most promising young sprinters. Running 10.23s at just 17 years of age highlights Pisal’s growing stature in Indian athletics and underlines his potential to challenge national benchmarks in legal conditions in the future.

Reliance athlete Fasalul Haque delivered a sensational performance at the Indian Athletics Series–8, breaking the Indian U20 national record in the men’s 110m hurdles with a lifetime best of 13.61 seconds.

The young hurdler eclipsed the previous national record mark and continued the remarkable rise in standards that Indian junior hurdling has witnessed over the past year.

Adding further depth to the event, Sandeep, who finished second, also clocked a time faster than the previous national record, highlighting the growing competitiveness of the discipline among India’s emerging athletes.

According to Athletics Federation of India records, the previous U20 national record of 13.69 seconds was set by Yuvaraj S at the Junior Federation Cup last year. However, that mark had already been surpassed earlier this season when Kiran K clocked 13.66 seconds at the Junior Federation Cup.

Fasalul’s 13.61s now establishes a new national benchmark and further cements his status as one of India’s most promising sprint hurdlers.

The progression of the event over the last 12 months has been particularly striking. In the span of just one year, four different athletes have collectively produced six performances faster than the old national record of 13.69 seconds. During that period, the national record itself has been improved three separate times, underlining the rapid evolution of men’s junior hurdling in India.

One of India’s most accomplished middle-distance runners, Harmilan Bains, made her long-awaited return to competition after nearly two years, finishing third in the women’s 10,000m at the Indian Athletics Series–8.

The 2023 Asian Games silver medallist in both the 800m and 1500m clocked 36:35.45 in her comeback race, marking her first competitive appearance since her impressive medal-winning campaign in Hangzhou.

The race was won by Ravina in 36:34.55, while Sanjivani secured second place in 36:35.33. Harmilan finished just fractions of a second behind the leading pair in a closely contested race.

The result is particularly significant because it suggests a possible shift in focus for the former Indian 1500m national record holder. Having built her reputation as one of India’s leading middle-distance athletes, Harmilan’s decision to return in the 10,000m could indicate plans to transition towards longer distances in the lead-up to major international competitions.

With the next Asian Games on the horizon, the women’s 10,000m presents an intriguing opportunity. The qualification standard for the event stands at 33:50.00, meaning Harmilan will need to substantially lower her time over the coming months if she intends to secure a place in the Indian team.

While the clock may not yet reflect her peak form, the most important takeaway from the race is that one of India’s biggest athletics stars is back on the track.

India’s women’s 4x100m relay team delivered another commanding performance on the international stage, clinching gold at the New Taipei City Athletics Open 2026 while equalling the Championship Record of 44.07 seconds.

The quartet of Srabani, Sneha, Sudheshna and Tamanna combined brilliantly to dominate the race from start to finish. Srabani gave India a solid start on the opening leg before Sneha maintained the momentum through the second exchange. Sudheshna then produced a blistering third leg to extend India’s advantage, setting the stage for Tamanna to bring the baton home with a strong anchor leg.

The winning time of 44.07 seconds carried a special significance. Not only did it secure another gold medal for India, but it also matched the Championship Record set by the Indian team at the same competition last year.

Remarkably, India had won gold at the 2025 edition of the New Taipei City Athletics Open in exactly the same time — 44.07 seconds — making this year’s triumph a near-perfect repeat of their success from twelve months ago.

While the result underlined India’s superiority at the meet, the team has already shown that there is even more speed in reserve. Their best performance over the past two years came at the Asian Athletics Championships in 2025, where the quartet clocked an impressive 43.86 seconds, becoming one of the few Asian teams capable of regularly breaking the 44-second barrier.

That benchmark will be firmly in their sights as preparations continue for the Asian Games. In sprint relays, consistency is often as important as outright speed, and India’s women have steadily established themselves as one of the continent’s most reliable relay units.

The performance in New Taipei City offered further evidence of that growing stability. Clean baton exchanges, strong individual legs and a winning mentality helped India comfortably secure another international title while matching the meet record they already owned.

With the Asian Games on the horizon, India’s women’s sprint relay team will be aiming to convert this consistency into even faster times. If they can produce a few more sub-44-second performances in the coming months, they could emerge as genuine medal contenders against Asia’s strongest sprint relay nations.

For now, however, the team can celebrate another gold medal, another Championship Record, and another reminder that Indian women’s sprinting continues to move in the right direction.

India’s national record holder Tejas Shirse continued his impressive run on the international circuit, clinching the silver medal in the men’s 110m hurdles at the New Taipei City Athletics Open 2026.

In a thrillingly close final, Shirse clocked 13.58 seconds to finish second, missing out on gold by the narrowest of margins. Chinese Taipei’s 20-year-old Hsieh Yuan-kai produced a stunning run to take top honours in 13.57 seconds, with just 0.01 seconds separating the two athletes at the finish line.

The result adds another strong international performance to Shirse’s growing résumé as he continues to establish himself as one of Asia’s leading hurdlers.

The Maharashtra athlete has been India’s premier 110m hurdler over the last two seasons. In May 2024, he rewrote the national record books when he clocked 13.41 seconds at the Motonet Grand Prix in Finland, breaking Siddhanth Thingalaya’s seven-year-old national mark of 13.48 seconds.

Since then, Shirse has enjoyed a remarkable rise. He has dominated the domestic circuit, winning three consecutive National Games gold medals and setting a new Games record of 13.65 seconds at the 2025 edition in Dehradun. Earlier that year, he also broke the Indian national record in the 60m hurdles indoors, underlining his growing consistency across formats.

The 23-year-old’s journey has not been without challenges. After suffering an injury setback earlier this year, Shirse returned to competition in May and immediately reminded everyone of his quality by clocking 13.43 seconds in Chennai, just 0.02 seconds outside his own national record. The performance came after only a few weeks of training following a four-month injury layoff.

Born in Aurangabad to a farming family with no sporting background, Shirse transformed from a talented junior athlete into the country’s fastest-ever sprint hurdler