Olympic wrestler Amarveer Dhesi suspended two years for anti-doping rule violation

Kyrgyzstan's Aiaal Lazarev, in red, and Canada's Amar Dhesi compete in their men's freestyle 125kg repechage wrestling match at Champ-de-Mars Arena during the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

OTTAWA — Olympic wrestler Amarveer Dhesi has been suspended for two years for an anti-doping rule violation, Sport Integrity Canada announced Thursday.

The independent body said the 30-year-old had three confirmed whereabouts failures during a 12-month period.

Dhesi appealed the decision, but an arbitrator confirmed the violation last month and imposed a ban through March 30, 2028, following a provisional suspension.

The Surrey, B.C., product is ineligible to participate in any capacity with signatories to the Canadian Anti-Doping Program or the World Anti-Doping Code, including coaching or training with teammates, during the sanction period, Sport Integrity Canada said in a statement.

The whereabouts program requires athletes to submit timely and accurate information for the purpose of locating them for out-of-competition testing without advance notice, Sport Integrity Canada added.

The 2022 Commonwealth Games champion competed at the last two Olympics for Canada, finishing 13th in the men’s 125-kilogram event in Tokyo before placing ninth in the same weight class in Paris.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 30, 2026.

The Canadian Press