LAUSANNE, Switzerland, (Reuters) – The International Olympic Committee (IOC) wants to give more power to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in the fight against drug-cheating by athletes, it said yesterday.
The IOC said it was agreed at a meeting of world sports leaders that the WADA should oversee the testing of athletes while sanctions would be decided by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Testing is currently conducted by either national anti-doping agencies or international sports federations, who also decide sanctions. WADA’s role is mainly a regulatory one which includes compiling the list of banned substances.
The so-called Olympics Summit, held behind closed-doors at a luxury hotel in Lausanne, also proposed that WADA should have more control over national anti-doping agencies, and should supervise national anti-doping programmes.
The IOC said the proposals would be put to WADA, which has the final say in whether to approve them, at their next meeting in November.
Relations between the IOC and WADA have been strained since two independent reports commissioned by WADA revealed evidence of widespread, state-sponsored doping in Russia.
The IOC resisted calls for a blanket ban on Russians competing in the Rio Games due to the country’s doping record, leaving decisions on individual athletes’ participation with their sports federations.
Last month’s Paralympics, however, did ban all Russian athletes.
