MONTREAL, Canada, May 17 (Xinhua) – Witold Banka, President of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), said on Friday that WADA is the foundation's highest decision-making body on anti-doping issues in China. He said he is receiving support. swimming case.
At an extraordinary board meeting to discuss a contamination case involving a swimmer from China, WADA received broad support from stakeholders.
“Today, WADA received the support of its Foundation Board, which in turn has the backing of members of all stakeholder groups, including athletes, the sports movement, governments and national anti-doping agencies,” Banka said.
During the Executive Board meeting, WADA provided its members with a full overview of the work it has done on this case from the moment it became aware of the 2021 positive test to the present day, from all perspectives: scientific, legal, intelligence and investigation.
WADA has now referred the matter to independent prosecutor Eric Cottier, who will conduct an investigation with the intention of issuing a report by the end of June.
Mr Banka said an independent prosecutor has now begun the review and will have full access to all WADA files and all information held by WADA.
“If he deems it necessary, he is also free to select other independent experts to assist him in reaching his conclusions,” Banka said. “WADA is open to considering any proposals in this regard.”
“In fact, as we are currently updating the World Anti-Doping Code and Stakeholder Consultation on International Standards, it is the perfect time to consider recommendations on how to further strengthen the global anti-doping system. It's about timing,” Banka said. .
WADA Vice President Yang Yang said he has full confidence in the prosecutor's ability to produce a fair and unbiased report based on facts and evidence.
“We now have to wait and see what his findings are,” she said.
Patrick O'Leary, WADA Athlete Council Executive Director, said: “It's really important that athletes' voices are not lost in this story and that we remain part of the conversation. ” he said.
“We welcome WADA’s move to invite an independent prosecutor to conduct a thorough review of the handling of this matter. Importantly, we reserve judgment and “It's about giving him the space he needs to carry out an independent process ahead of the Paris Olympics.” ”
WADA founding president Dick Pound launched a blistering attack on the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) during the meeting.
“I am extremely disappointed and disgusted by the deliberate lies and distortions by USADA, including that WADA covered up the Chinese doping incident,” Pound said. “These accusations, which are devoid of any truth, have a single purpose: to intentionally damage WADA's reputation and undermine the global trust that WADA has built since its founding a quarter of a century ago to lead the international fight.” Doping in sport. ”
“What's missing from USADA's actions is a willingness to work towards a solution, only endless and biased criticism,” he said.
Ms Yang also expressed anger at how the story was portrayed in the media in relation to her Chinese nationality.
“It's not right. It's not true. It's shameful that my integrity is being questioned without any evidence,” she said. “As a former athlete who has been voluntarily involved in sports organizations for over 20 years, I strongly believe that sports can bring people together and create hope and opportunity. Some people are trying to divide us.”
“This is extremely unfair to athletes who are preparing for the biggest moments of their careers, not only to athletes whose identities, including minors, have been unfairly made public, but also to misinformation from groups with ulterior motives.” So are the athletes who have been misled.''Therefore, they will lose confidence in clean sport. ”
“Manipulating athletes for one's own ego or political purposes is completely unacceptable, which is why we must ensure that people see the truth and protect athletes' trust in clean sport,” she added. .
WADA has provided around 1,700 doping test samples from 2018 to 2022 by involved Chinese athletes, some of whom have been tested by the International Swimming Federation (now known as World Aquatics) and the China Anti-Doping Agency. He admitted that he was inspected dozens of times a year.
According to WADA, nearly 300 samples were collected from athletes in the nearly four months between April 1, 2021 and the opening of the Tokyo Olympics in July 2021, which equates to an average of several samples per month per athlete. He says he will.
WADA was founded in 1999 as an international independent organization leading a collaborative global movement for doping-free sport, with a 42-member Foundation Board and a 16-member Executive Committee. The Foundation Board of Directors delegates the management and operation of the committee. agency. ■
