According to the report, both athletes had testosterone levels significantly above the range set for female competitors.
Bangladesh athletes Jannat Begum (left) and Kabita Roy have been stripped of their medals and handed lifetime bans following gender eligibility tests. Photo: Collected
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Bangladesh athletes Jannat Begum (left) and Kabita Roy have been stripped of their medals and handed lifetime bans following gender eligibility tests. Photo: Collected
The Bangladesh Athletics Federation has cancelled the medals of two athletes and imposed lifetime bans following medical evaluations concerning their eligibility to compete in the female category.
The athletes have been identified as Jannat Begum, a thrower from the Bangladesh Army, and Kabita Roy, a sprinter from the Bangladesh Navy.
The federation’s newly formed ad hoc committee formally approved the medal cancellations and lifetime bans at a meeting yesterday (15 August).
According to Prothom Alo, the federation’s previous committee ordered medical examinations at Bngladesh Medical University following allegations about their eligibility.
The university formed a five-member expert medical board on 10 September 2025.
The board completed its evaluation on 11 May and submitted its final report to the federation on 16 May.
According to the report, both athletes had testosterone levels significantly above the range set for female competitors.
Jannat’s blood testosterone level was recorded at 19.66 nmol/L, nearly eight times the World Athletics limit of 2.5 nmol/L, while Kabita’s was 16.50 nmol/L, around 6.5 times the permitted threshold.
Under World Athletics regulations, athletes competing in the female category must maintain blood testosterone below 2.5 nmol/L for 24 months.
Ali Imam Tapon, general secretary of the Bangladesh Athletics Federation, told Prothom Alo that the medical board unanimously concluded that the two athletes were male.
“As a result, all medals they won in national competitions have been cancelled and will be reallocated”, he added.
Jannat has won nine medals, including several golds, while Kabita has around four medals, Tapon said.
He further said that both athletes have been banned for life and will no longer be allowed to compete in the female category.
Questions over the eligibility of Jannat, 28, and Kabita, 19, had persisted for some time.
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