UK Anti-Doping initiative demonstrates the importance of clean sport to the next generation

From 19-23 May, UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) hosted its annual Clean Sport Week. This year’s theme focused on the next generation (7–19-year-olds) and explored their views on doping in sport.  

To kick start Clean Sport Week, UKAD published the findings of a public survey conducted with thousands of parents and teenagers across the UK. It showed that teenagers care about fair play, with around 85% of those surveyed saying that athletes caught taking Image and Performance Enhancing Drugs (IPEDs) should face a ban from sport.  

The public survey results also revealed that 62% of parents felt they knew about anti-doping*. UKAD hopes to continue to grow this figure with parents playing a fundamental role in their children’s sporting careers early on.  

With this in mind, UKAD announced plans to develop a refreshed Parents and Carers Guide to help those with children in elite sport better understand the rules and give them confidence in their anti-doping knowledge.  

Throughout Clean Sport Week, National Governing Bodies of sport and partner institutions engaged with young people across the UK, delivering engaging values-based education sessions, interactive workshops and sharing hints and tips which will benefit them in the future. This has also been a great opportunity for UKAD to gain valuable insights from this demographic, helping it to review its resources and generate new content for athletes, parents, carers, sports and athlete support personnel. 

UKAD shared that it will also soon be developing an Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) Handbook to provide support to athletes facing a possible ban from sport. It will contain guidance on what they can expect from the process, how the legal proceedings work, links to useful contacts and support networks, plus more. 

During a panel event at Manchester Metropolitan University last week, which saw around 80 members of the sporting community gather, bans from sport and the importance of a good athlete support network were just some of the topics discussed by the athletes and industry experts in attendance. 

Sporting stars got behind the initiative online too, with the likes of Bianca Williams (athletics), Alice Dearing and Amelie Blocksidge (swimming), Marcus Stock (RFL), and Mel Nicholls (paratriathlon), to name a few, sharing their stories and advice for the next generation through video and written content during the week. 

As a result of individuals and organisations across the UK and internationally backing the initiative, UKAD saw more than 1.6m people reached with Clean Sport Week content, 105,000 views on its videos created and over 140 external stakeholders promoting the concept online – its biggest engagement to date.  

Jane Rumble, UKAD’s Chief Executive, commented: 

“We have seen a phenomenal response to this year’s Clean Sport Week. It has been our biggest year so far with many individuals and organisations coming forward to advocate for clean sport. I’d like to thank everyone who has taken the time to get involved, including athletes, support personnel and our Athlete Commission, plus our Clean Sport Week partners, including SportsAid and TASS (Talented Athlete Support Scheme). 

“We have learnt a great deal from the research published and the insights athletes gave throughout last week, however it doesn’t stop there, and we want to ensure we take everything we’ve learnt and use it to develop new ways to support athletes on their sporting journey.  

“Developing a refreshed Parents and Carers Guide is just one of the ideas we are implementing after Clean Sport Week. We are always striving to keep improving and creating new resources that can help improve the athlete experience in anti-doping.” 

UKAD will be shifting its focus to university age groups and athletes at the start of their elite sporting careers for its next Clean Sport Week. This will involve working closely with UKAD’s Higher Education partners and will see Clean Sport Week moved earlier to allow more universities to get involved. The exact date for 2026 will be announced in due course.  

To keep up to date on all things clean sport and to hear more about next year’s plans, follow @ukantidoping on social media.  

Notes 

*Please note,  ‘I know a lot about it’, ‘I know a little, but I'd be interested in learning more’ and ‘I know a little, and I'm not interested in learning more’ answers combined.