USADA Puts WADA On Blast For Sweeping "23 Positive Tests Under The Carpet"
02/05/2024 16:50
By James Sutherland on SwimSwam
The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has not been quiet in the wake of news that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for an illegal substance prior to the Tokyo Olympics and were cleared to compete, and the organization continued to call for transparency on Wednesday.
USADA slammed the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) with a lengthy statement that included them picking apart WADA’s FAQ document published April 29 that aims to address why it handled the Chinese doping case the way it did.
USADA claims WADA has been “doubling down on half-truths and self-serving rationalizations for failing to enforce its own rules” and that those who value fair play are unsatisfied by the agency’s answers regarding “its sweeping of 23 positive tests under the carpet.”
“We echo athletes' demands to create a truly independent investigation and let impartial experts and stakeholders participate in the process,” USADA said. “We must get real answers, ensure accountability for any failures, and secure true reform at WADA to fulfill the promise we all have to clean athletes and the fairness of sport.”
WADA has come under fire since the revelation that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine (TMZ) approximately seven months before the Tokyo Olympic Games and were allowed to compete.
The positive tests were collected at the Chinese Long Course Championships from January 1-3, 2021.
The positive cases were investigated by the China Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA), which found that the swimmers unknowingly ingested TMZ due to contamination. WADA said it was "not in a position to disprove” those findings.
USADA CEO Travis Tygart has been lobbying Congress for an independent prosecutor to be appointed to the case, a sentiment that was echoed by Rahul Gupta, the director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy under President Joe Biden.
However, WADA, a Swiss foundation, picked Eric Cottier, the former attorney for the Swiss canton of Vaud, to investigate the case. This only ratcheted up the volume from USADA’s calls for a “truly” independent review.
In its statement and 16-page document published Wednesday, USADA first runs through “WADA Facts,” things they’ve published regarding the case, and then outlines how these statements break their own rules.
USADA then goes through WADA’S FAQ document point by point and rebuts the answers provided with more questions regarding the case and its handling.
One significant issue USADA has is WADA’s lack of investigation into the source of the positive tests.
“WADA does not know the athletes ingested TMZ from the kitchen; and WADA does not know how TMZ got in the kitchen in the first place,” USADA writes.
WADA consistently says the analytical results indicated a “possible contamination scenario” early in the process.
“WADA keeps saying this, but coordinated doping was equally possible from the outset, particularly given the tips WADA received,” USADA said.
In another rebuttal, USADA writes: “The facts and intelligence also support a finding of coordinated intentional doping such that WADA should have initiated an investigation into the source of these positive tests.
“But it did not, failing all clean athletes. Nothing about the situation in China at the time prevented CHINADA from following the rules and WADA enforcing its own rules. Despite COVID-19 lockdowns around the world, anti-doping organizations continued to notice athletes of violations and impose mandatory provisional suspensions. CHINADA ignored these rules, and WADA permitted it.”
USADA closes the FAQ rebuttal by saying WADA needs to be held accountable.
“If one follows the facts, it is evident that WADA allowed these cases not to be publicly announced in 2021 when the rules required that they be publicly announced. Failing to ensure high profile cases in the weeks before the Olympic Games are publicly announced in accordance with the rules can only be described as WADA covering up those cases.
“Indeed, these cases would remain covered up by WADA had it not been for brave whistleblowers and reporters who rightfully brought these cases to light. WADA needs to be held to account.”
A WADA spokesperson told Reuters the organization stands by the FAQ sheet and that it “followed every process and line of inquiry when reviewing this file.”
“Based on the science and the verifiable facts, as well as external legal counsel, (WADA) decided not to take what inevitably would have been a doomed appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport,” the spokesperson said, according to Reuters.
“To this day, no evidence has been produced that would change our position on that. Very serious and defamatory allegations continue to be made about WADA without so much as a shred of supporting evidence. WADA continues to reject those allegations as entirely baseless.”
FULL USADA DOCUMENT
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