A day after losing out on the Hangzhou Asian Games heptathlon bronze to compatriot Nandini Agasara, former Asiad gold medallist Swapna Barman made startling allegations against Nandini, saying she lost to a transgender athlete, and wanted her medal back.
On Monday, Swapna flagged her concern in a social media post without naming Nandini, and appealed for support.
“I have lost my Asian Games bronze medal to a transgender women at the 19th Asian Games held in Hangzhou,China,” Swapna wrote on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter)
“I want my medal back as it is against the rules of our Athletics. Help me and support me please,” she added.
The 26-year-old Swapna finished a heartbreaking fourth after finishing four points shy of Nandini’s 5712 points. She said that she had previously complained against the Telengana athlete, but fell on deaf ears.
Earlier, the 20-year-old Nandini finished with an overall total of 5712 points, a personal best. She won the final event – the 800m race – to seal the third place ahead of compatriot Swapna. Apart from the 800m, Nandini won the 200m race as well which got her 936 points.
She, however, wasn’t in medal contention till this point before Nandini ensured herself the third spot in women’s long jump to take the bronze.
China’s Zheng Ninali claimed the gold medal with a season-best score of 6149 while Uzbekistan’s Ekaterina Voronina placed second with 6056 points.
According to the latest World Athletics regulations which came into force from March 31 this year, all athletes who have gone through what World Athletics calls ‘male puberty’ are prohibited from participating in all female world rankings competitions.
Swapna, reportedly had also alleged that Nandini had ‘fled’ the Games Village following her complaint.