WADA WELCOMES SIGNIFICANT DECISION BY COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORT

Montreal, 24 April 2019 – A newly developed method for detecting the use of prohibited substances in athletes has led to a significant and unprecedented 29 March 2019 decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in favour of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
 
CAS issued a final award confirming Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) in the cases of the Ukrainian track and field athletes, Olesia Povh and Olha Zemliak. Both athletes were convicted of using a prohibited substance based on the detection of non-physiological levels of testosterone in their blood serum samples following analysis in the WADA-accredited laboratories in Lausanne, Switzerland, and Seibersdorf, Austria.
 
The testing was initiated by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). This led to the subsequent investigation, which resulted in these important convictions. The measurement of testosterone levels in blood serum constitutes a further tool for Anti-Doping Organizations (ADOs) to detect and prosecute doping, even where urine samples might be reported as negative.
 
WADA Director General Olivier Niggli said: “WADA welcomes this decision by CAS, which could have a long-term positive impact on clean sport. I would also like to commend the AIU for their excellent work which led to this outcome. The decision sets an important precedent and this new method of detecting doping represents another way for ADOs to secure Anti-Doping Rule Violations against those who choose to cheat. It is a significant victory for clean sport and for athletes around the world.”
 
Significantly, CAS ruled that there could be no doubt on the evidence that the method used in measuring testosterone in blood serum was scientifically valid, paving the way for further examples of this method being used in the future.
 
Olesia Povh was sanctioned with a four-year period of ineligibility for intentional doping while Olha Zemliak received an eight-year period of ineligibility as it was her second violation.

WADA WELCOMES LATEST COURT OF ARBITRATION FOR SPORT DECISIONS

Montreal, 1 February 2019 – The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) welcomes the decisions of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) issued today (1 February) in 12 disciplinary cases against athletes that stem from the WADA-commissioned investigation conducted by Prof. Richard McLaren into institutionalized doping in Russia. CAS agreed with the reports issued by Prof. McLaren and the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), on behalf of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), and pursued allegations of anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs) against the 12 Russian athletes, concluding that these athletes “participated in and/or benefited from anabolic steroid doping programs and benefited from specific protective methods” between 2012 and 2013. CAS found that the violations were committed as part of a centralized doping scheme and these rulings confirm an earlier CAS decision in the case of another Russian athlete, Anna Pyatykh, which was also brought forward by the AIU based on McLaren evidence in 2017. WADA Director General Olivier Niggli said: “These decisions come as welcome news for athletes, anti-doping organizations, WADA and all others around the world who care about clean sport. This should serve to reassure athletes that a lot of work is being conducted behind the scenes by various organizations that are committed to ensure that justice is rendered. It reinforces the importance of ensuring that due process is followed and that evidence is carefully presented. “I congratulate the AIU and IAAF for successfully bringing these cases forward. It is vitally important now that the hard work continues for the good of all athletes across a range of sports. This creates an important precedent that will be used in future cases. “This highlights also, once again, just how important the successful retrieval of the analytical data from the former Moscow Laboratory by WADA last month is for clean sport and reinforces the decision taken by the WADA Executive Committee (ExCo) on 20 September 2018 to reinstate as compliant the Russian Anti-Doping Agency under strict conditions, including access to the data. This large amount of data, which would not have been retrieved without that September ExCo decision, is currently being verified and assessed and, if found to be authentic, will be used to bring forward more cases against those who cheated.”

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James Fitzgerald Senior Manager, Media Relations and Communications Phone: + 1-514-904-8225 E-mail: media@wada-ama.org Maggie Durand Manager, Media Relations and Communications Phone: + 1-514-904-8225 E-mail: media@wada-ama.org