TESTING & RESULTS
UK Sport’s domestic and international testing programme – in accordance with the Intelligent Testing Model – delivered over 7,800 Missions in 2007/8, including nearly 400 blood screens and tests, and tests on over 100 British athletes training abroad. The target of 60% Out of Competition Testing was achieved.
UK Sport carried out over 1,300 drug tests on Britain’s 523 Olympic and Paralympic athletes in the run-up to last summer’s Games in Beijing. Over 400 tests were conducted on the 151 British athletes who won medals as part of the most comprehensive pre-Games testing programme ever conducted in the UK. Of the 523 athletes who went to Beijing, 21% were tested four or more times, 22% were tested three times, and 35% were tested twice. 98% of athletes in high priority sports were tested at least twice out-of-competition. All British Olympic medallists in rowing, cycling and athletics were tested at least three times. In addition, UK Sport supplied a Doping Control Officer (DCO) to the Beijing Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (BOCOG) to assist with their testing programme for the duration of the Olympic Games.
Sports Resolution UK wrote to all National Governing Bodies (NGBs) on the Anti-Doping Testing Programme informing them of how they could interface with the National Anti Doping Panel (NADP). In addition Sports Resolution UK and UK Sport jointly chaired a roundtable discussion with NGBs at the NGB Anti-Doping Conference in March. This provided an opportunity for discussion with NGBs with regard to specific NADP procedures. The procedural rules of the NADP were released on the NADP website www.nadp.uk.com in March. The rules will determine the conduct of cases that come before the NADP. The NADP accepted referrals from 7 April 2008. The President of the NADP is Peter Leaver QC, and consists of 16 members from a mix of professional backgrounds including senior lawyers, doctors, scientists and sportsmen and women.
COMPLIANCE
Andy Parkinson was appointed to the role of Acting Director of Drug-Free Sport in July following the departure of John Scott who left to become Chief Executive of 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games.
UK Sport published both the UK Anti-Doping Rules and the UK Anti-Doping Procedures Guide in line with the revised World Anti-Doping Code (Code) and International Standard for Testing which came into effect on 1 January this year. The 2009 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods was also issued by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in September. Both the Rules and Procedures guide were developed to make the transition to the new Code as simple as possible for NGBs. All NGBs on the Testing Programme were informed of their responsibilities in amending their Anti-Doping Rules by the New Year’s Day deadline.
Revisions were also made to the Doping Control Manual. The Manual was reviewed and extensively revised with a view to producing a more consolidated and clearer set of instructions for Doping Control Staff to use when out ‘in the field’. The renamed Doping Control Staff Handbook was unveiled at the annual DCO re-registration meeting at the end of December 2007 and incorporates all relevant aspects of the International Standard for Testing. All Doping Control Staff attended regional mentoring sessions to review, discuss compliance with and be trained on new procedures stipulated in the Handbook.
The new online Whereabouts system, ADAMS (Anti-Doping Administration Management System), was introduced to NGBs following its launch in December 2007. All athlete inductions identified for either the transition to ADAMS or requiring a new induction to the provision of whereabouts and ADAMS were completed. This resulted in over 14 sports, 600 athletes and approximately 60 face to face inductions.
EDUCATION
UK Sport produced its most comprehensive education programme to date with the pre-Beijing programme. Through 100% ME, UK Sport delivered close to 30 ‘sprint sessions’ to those athletes who travelled to China last summer. The sessions delivered short, sharp and focused updates on the vital anti-doping information athletes needed to know ahead of representing Britain at the Olympic and Paralympic Games and allowed the 100% ME team the opportunity to address athletes personally. Sessions took place at destinations nationwide, including Manchester, Birmingham, Sheffield, Edinburgh and Cardiff.
In addition, up to 700 athletes and support staff received personal log-ins for the 100% ME dedicated Beijing website – www.100percentme.co.uk/beijing - a further resource which allowed athletes another opportunity to access the information they needed, via a range of educational tools and interactive features, including video clips, blogs and profiles of the 100% ME ambassadors. A dedicated helpline was also available during the Games.
UK Sport supported the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) through various Regional Anti-Doping Organisation (RADO) initiatives, running a workshop on Therapeutic Use Exemptions (TUEs) in the Philippines, sharing its experience of training and developing Doping Control Officers (DCOs) at a workshop in South Africa and training 12 DCOs in the South and West Asian RADOs (approximately 20 countries and 50 DCOs) as part of the WADA programme to develop testing capabilities. In addition, follow up training was managed by UK Sport at the Dubai Marathon and an Out-of-Competition mission in Muscat, Oman.
UK Sport hosted an Orientation Day for National Governing Bodies (NGBs) in October. NGBs with athletes who were required to provide whereabouts information were invited to the 2009 World Anti-Doping Code (Code) and International Standards Orientation Day to gain a clearer understanding of the part they must play in adhering to the new regulations. The 100% ME team also addressed those athletes affected at a number of face-to face sessions (and/or re-inductions) on the changes coming in with the revised Code, re-iterating their responsibilities as a result. Elsewhere, along with the British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine (BASEM), UK Sport also co-hosted a workshop on anti-doping in sport for sports medics.
Meanwhile, sprinter Dwain Chambers attended a meeting at UK Sport in May, to help UK Sport in the ongoing fight against doping in sport. “We welcome the fact that Dwain has come in to speak with us,” said former Director of Drug-Free Sport, John Scott at the time. “We had a constructive and positive meeting and see it very much as the starting point of what we hope will be an ongoing relationship. This was a private meeting and it will not assist either party to go into any great detail of what was discussed at this stage,” he added.
