WADA called for the introduction of biological passports for neutral Russians before the Olympic Games

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has called on anti-doping organizations to introduce biological passports for neutral Russians wishing to compete at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. The press service of the organization reported this to RIA Novosti.

They noted that they are skeptical and wary of Russia. “Athletes around the world want to know that all their competitors, no matter where they are from, faced the same pre-Games conditions as they did, and that the system is protecting them,” WADA said.

At the same time, WADA emphasized that the department for managing biological passports of Russian athletes is completely and independently managed by an agency-accredited laboratory outside of Russia. “Despite this, and given history, we call on anti-doping organizations to introduce biological passports for all athletes from Russia who could potentially compete in Paris,” WADA added. .

On December 5, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) published a press release following the Olympic summit, one of the paragraphs of which expresses WADA’s negative position on Russia’s organization of the Friendship Games. The organization said similar events would be organized by the same Russian government that was implicated in a systematic doping program at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.

On the same day, international sports federations asked the IOC to allow neutral athletes from Russia who have qualified or have the opportunity to qualify for the Games to the 2024 Paris Olympics.