The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) reported new cases of meldonium use by Russian athletes from November 8, 2015 to May 29, 2016. Tests taken by the British Anti-Doping Agency (UKAD) gave a positive result. Out of 455 samples, prohibited substances were found in 52: in 49 cases it was meldonium, in the rest – meldonium and tuaminoheptane, as well as stanozolol and nandrolone. The names of the athletes are not disclosed. Another 73 samples could not be taken.
Information about new positive doping tests is contained in the June WADA report on the situation with doping in Russian sports. Most of the document focuses on the tricks that Russian athletes use to avoid testing. Thus, 736 requests from UKAD for testing were not satisfied: 669 – due to insufficient authority of the structures that requested samples, 25 – due to a change in their location, two – due to the withdrawal of athletes from sports and another 40 – “for other reasons “.
Of the 2947 samples of Russian athletes at the competition, only 1137 were taken, another 1810, or 61%, were taken outside the competition. Doping controllers note that information on the location of Russian athletes is rarely updated and of low quality. So, one of the athletes did not report his presence for nine weeks. The doping officers could not find two more cyclists for more than a year, as a result, due to missed tests, they ceased to be professional athletes.
Often, athletes hide in military camps, access to which is limited. The WADA report tells about the “intimidation” of the anti-doping laboratory employees when they try to get into the military camps “Armed FSB agents threaten them with expulsion from the country,” the document says. In February 2016, WADA raised the issue of the access of its experts to military camps; on May 27, the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) indicated that access was granted, but no official documentation confirming this information was received from the Ministry of Sports.
Taking doping samples from Russian athletes at competitions is also not easy, follows from the report. Often, start schedules are published day after day, and the region is indicated as the venue – without specifying the city. It also tells about cases when employees of anti-doping services were simply not allowed to the Russian weightlifting championships in Vladikavkaz and Greco-Roman wrestling in Grozny due to the tense situation in the regions.
Athletes also try to avoid taking tests, sometimes literally. So, one athlete ran away from the mixed zone after the competition when he saw a doping officer. Another athlete escaped directly during the competition, and it was not possible to find her. Another athlete tried to pass the test using a container inserted into her body. When the contents of the container poured not into the test tube, but onto the floor, she tried to bribe the laboratory employee. As a result, her tests came back positive.
However, it is not always possible to save already taken samples. The WADA report describes cases where test tubes were opened by Russian customs officials. It is also noted that all collected samples must pass through Moscow, which delays the transportation time. As a result, the collected blood tests may simply disappear.
Failure to pay salaries to anti-doping laboratory staff could also be used as a tool to evade sample collection. The report cites a case of “significant reduction in testing” over five weeks.
The New York Times (NYT) published an investigation about WADA’s unwillingness to investigate allegations against Russian athletes and about the growing distrust of this organization in the world of sports. The newspaper learned that back in December 2012, WADA received a letter from a Russian athlete with a proposal to tell the details about the use of doping. Discus thrower Daria Pishchalnikova, silver medalist of the London Olympics, wrote to the organization. She claimed that she was taking illegal drugs at the direction of Russian sports and anti-doping officials, that she had information about the systematic use of doping by Russian athletes, and begged to initiate an investigation, the newspaper writes. A WADA lawyer allegedly showed a letter to three high-ranking representatives of this organization, indicating that Pishchalnikova’s charges are quite specific and contain facts and names, however, WADA did not conduct its own investigation, and the athlete’s letter was sent to Russian officials whom she intended to expose, the newspaper adds. Only years later, WADA, partially funded by US taxpayers, recommended that Russian athletes be barred from international doping competitions, NYT notes.
According to the newspaper, conversations with dozens of officials and athletes show that WADA was inattentive to information about corruption violations, was unable to conduct a rigorous investigation and was so influenced by political considerations that it became largely ineffective in fulfilling its main mission of protecting cleanliness. sports. Some representatives of the agency indicate that they could not do anything about the accusations against the Russians: the officials did not have clear obligations to conduct investigations, their resources and powers were limited. Other officials and athletes object to them, the newspaper writes. WADA presents as a sensation information about the systematic use of doping in Russia, although in fact “everyone knew about the Russians for a long time,” Arne Lundqvist, the former chairman of the medical commission of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), told the publication.
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