Wrestlers from Iran and Azerbaijan banned after testing positive for anabolic steroids



  • Thursday, 5 January 2017






United World Wrestling (UWW) has suspended Iranian Bashir Asgari Babajanzadeh and Azerbaijan’s Zubair Dibirov for four years each after they failed drugs tests.



Babajanzadeh tested positive for testosterone at the Greco-Roman World Cup in Shiraz in his homeland on May 20 last year.


UWW has also suspended Azerbaijani wrestler Dibirov for four years following after he tested positive for stanozolol at the Junior World Championships in Macon in France last September.


Both wrestlers chose not to have their B sample examined.


In accordance with the UWW anti-doping rules, Babajanzadeh had his case reviewed by a sporting judge who imposed a four-year period of ineligibility from August 31 in 2016 to August 31 in 2020.


Babajanzadeh was a member of the national Iranian team during the World Cup, which ran between May 19 and 20 in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz.


The Iranian squad comfortably defeated Russia 8-0 in the final.
Bashir Asgari Babajanzadeh, right, is one of two athletes to be banned for four years ©UWW
The 26-year-old heavyweight received a bye in the first round at Rio 2016 inside Carioca Arena 2.


Babajanzadeh then overcame 29-year-old Chinese counterpart Meng Qiang 3-1 in his first encounter but was then beaten by German Eduard Popp.


Dibirov also having had his case reviewed by a sporting judge and had a four-year period of ineligibility imposed.


His ban will run from October 5 in 2016 until October 4 in 2020.