The International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) is facing a serious threat. It has just been declared non-compliant with the World Anti-Doping Code, with immediate effect. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) announced this on Monday 17 October in a statement, explaining that the body had implemented a testing programme that did not comply with the Code and was under-resourced. WADA sent a formal notification of non-compliance to the IFBB on 23 September. The International Federation then had 21 days to contest the allegation of non-compliance. Now that the deadline has passed, the notification sent automatically becomes a final decision. The IFBB loses its WADA privileges until it is reinstated. Its representatives cannot hold a position at WADA, the IFBB can no longer host a WADA event, and most importantly it loses its funding (direct or indirect) from the Montreal-based agency. Finally, its athletes can no longer participate in regional, continental or international multi-sport competitions.
