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The International Testing Agency (ITA) issued a warning to wrestler Vinesh Phogat on Monday for her first whereabouts failure to out-of-competition dope testing.

Under the World Anti-Doping Code, any athlete who accumulates three whereabouts failures within 12 months will receive a minimum two-year suspension from professional sport.

Vinesh, who has announced her comeback to wrestling recently, has just received her first warning and hence will not be banned or provisionally suspended at the moment.

She can compete at the Senior Open Ranking Tournament in Gonda from 10-12 May, which is the final chance for the athletes to get an entry in the national camp for Asian Games trials. It will mark her return to the competitive fold, having reversed her retirement in December last year.

Although there is speculation that this news has been timed to divert attention from Vinesh’s recent social media statement, it must be noted that the ITA warning has no relation to it.

In her post, Vinesh had identified herself as a victim of sexual harassment by former Wrestling Federation of India President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh and expressed fear about competing in Gonda. She had also voiced her worri about potential biased officiating during her comeback event.

Timeline of Vinesh Phogat’s whereabouts failure

December 12, 2025: Vinesh announced her comeback from retirement via a social media post.

“No matter how far I walked away, a part of me stayed on the mat. So here I am, stepping back toward LA28 with a heart that’s unafraid and a spirit that refuses to bow, ” she wrote in an Instagram post to announce her return.

December 18, 2025: ITA asks for Vinesh’s whereabouts

As per the World Anti-Doping Code, if an RTP athlete is returning from retirement, he/she must be available for testing for at least six months in advance before participating in any International or National events.

January 5, 2026: ITA issues a notice to Vinesh

After the Doping Control officer (DCO) couldn’t find Vinesh in the designated 60-min testing window in Bangalore on Dec 18, ITA issued a notice to her, asking for the reasons behind it.

January 18, 2026: Vinesh files her reply

Vinesh mentioned that she couldn’t give the test because she had to travel back to Chandigarh for the first winter session in the Haryana Parliament Assembly.

May 4, 2026: ITA registers Vinesh’s first whereabout failure

The ITA was not satisfied with Vinesh’s explanation and questioned her for failing to inform them about the change in location before the testing day, ultimately counting it as a missed test.

What is a whereabouts failure?

A whereabouts failure is an anti-doping rule violation in competitive sports, where an athlete in a Registered Testing Pool (RTP) fails to provide their accurate location or making them unavailable for no-notice drug testing.

A Doping Control Officer (DCO) is issued to test an RTP athlete during their declared 60-minute time slot for such tests, but if the athlete is not available at the specified location, it counts as a missed test.

Three such whereabouts failures (any combination of Filing Failures and Missed Tests) within 12 months may result in a 2-year ban from sport.

It must also be noted that usually the news about any athlete getting a first whereabouts failure warning is closely guarded by the authorities. It is only after the athlete fail to furnish their whereabouts three times in a year that the news is revealed.