Santhi 'not female', to lose silver

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New Delhi: One of India's medal winners at the Asian Games in Doha, Santhi Soundarajan, is likely to be stripped of her silver medal after it was found that she did not have the "sexual characteristics of a woman."

Santhi picked up the silver clocking 2 minutes, 3.16 seconds behind Mariam Yusuf Jamal of Bahrain. In fact, India finished their campaign at the Doha Asian Games with their best ever haul - 54 medals.

"Santhi was subjected to a gender test after the 800m final and she has failed," Dr Manmohan Singh, chairman of the Indian Olympic Association's Medical Commission, told PTI. "We have received the report of the test on Santhi."

Sources have confirmed CNN-IBN that it was found at the Asian Games in Doha itself after Santhi had won the medal. It is understood that sports officials in India were also aware of the situation.

"In our days such tests were never conducted. However, nowadays the prize money is so high that athletes take to short cuts to win. The sport is not what it used to be once. Gender verification tests should be brought back in a big way," Ashwani Kumar, former IOC member, told CNN-IBN on Sunday.

The Indian contingent was earlier given a blow when Seema Antil, a discuss thrower was alleged to have tested positive for drugs and was promptly withdrawn from the games.

However, she was given a clean chit by the Indian authorities and proved innocent, but she refused to take any further part citing mental stress.

Santhi's rise from obscurity made her the surprise element from India at the Doha Asiad, as her efforts boosted India's mediocre medal tally at the Games.