KOZHIKODE: Age fraud has been confirmed at the ongoing State School Sports Meet in Kozhikode after a student from CKM HSS Koruthodu in Kottayam district failed an age-verification test. The student, who arrived in Kerala from Uttar Pradesh this year, had won gold in the sub-junior 400m event. The student's age was established through a bone examination. Following the confirmation of the age discrepancy, the student was disqualified, and a decision was taken to award the gold medal to the athlete who had won silver.
Mar Basil School, Kothamangalam, had lodged the complaint alleging age fraud. The student had competed in the sub-junior category, which is for participants below the age of 14, allegedly by providing an incorrect date of birth. According to the medical report, the student is between 15 and 18 years old. Records showed the student's year of birth as 2014, but the examination established that the student was actually born in 2012.
This is the first time in the history of the State School Sports Meet that age fraud has been detected through a bone examination. The result of the 400m event is currently being withheld.