New Delhi, Jul 4 (IANS): India's top woman 400m runner Deepanshi has been suspended by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) after testing positive for anabolic steroids during the recent National Inter-State Athletics Championships, held at Panchkula, Haryana. Deepanshi had secured a silver medal in the event, clocking an impressive 52.01 seconds in the women's 400m final.

The 21-year-old athlete had finished just behind Kiran Pahal, who won the gold with a time of 50.92 seconds, setting a new meet record.

However, the jubilation of her podium finish was short-lived as her in-competition dope sample, collected on June 27 either after her heat race or semifinal, returned positive results for banned substances.

This unfortunate incident marks the first doping violation from the National Inter-State Championships, which took place from June 27 to 30 and served as the final qualifying event for the upcoming Paris Olympics.

Deepanshi's suspension has raised several eyebrows, particularly because she does not train at the National camp, a fact that has led to widespread speculation about the sources of her doping substances and the nature of her training environment.