Montreal, March 12, 2024
This week, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is organizing its Annual Symposium 2024 in Lausanne, Switzerland, bringing together nearly 1.100 delegates from the global anti-doping community under the theme “One mission, one team”.
The two-day event began today with keynote speeches by WADA President Witold Bańka [in English] and general manager Olivier Niggli. They welcomed delegates to WADA's 25th anniversary celebration and highlighted some of the achievements of the global anti-doping community since WADA's inception in 1999. They then discussed opportunities to today and tomorrow to strengthen the global anti-doping system in collaboration with stakeholders around the world.
“This week, WADA celebrates its 25th anniversary,” said WADA President Witold Bańka. This quarter century has been marked by progress, growth and, above all, collaboration with the global anti-doping community. The very origins of the Agency are the result of a unique partnership between sport and governments around the world. , Remarkably, this is a partnership that has stood the test of time. I am not aware of any other socio-political scenario in which this has happened. »
Continuing the theme of collaboration, European Commission Vice-President Margaritis Schinas delivered a virtual keynote address on the importance of the long-standing partnership between the Commission and WADA in areas such as education and awareness; scientific and social science research; and, of course, Intelligence and Investigations.
This naturally resulted in one of the most revealing sessions of the week, led by WADA's Director of Intelligence and Investigations (I&I), Günter Younger. The session focused on the exceptional results arising from the Anti-doping project of the Intelligence and Investigations Department in Europe, which involved collaboration between National Anti-Doping Organizations (NADOs) and law enforcement agencies from 48 European countries aimed at reducing the prevalence of doping in sport and maximizing the health benefits for young people.
In the presence of more than 60 law enforcement officers from 31 different European countries, including several from Europol and INTERPOL, Günter Younger shared the successes of the project, including:
- A total of 67 joint operations between NADOs and law enforcement agencies, including customs (many still ongoing);
- A total of 14 illicit laboratories which were dismantled within the framework of 38 operations carried out by the Polish Anti-Doping Agency and the Polish police;
- More than 14.457 kg of prohibited substances were intercepted and seized, representing approximately 288 million doses of drugs;
- Multiple training activities attended by a total of 135 people, of which 67 were representatives of law enforcement and INTERPOL;
- The establishment of a portable device project to identify doping substances after seizures;
- The development of guidelines relating to the legal framework to highlight best practices and promote the harmonization of I&I in Europe; And
- The launch of the campaign “Natural is Enough” on social media, which generated 13 million impressions;
“WADA is delighted with the results of the European Intelligence and Investigation Department's Anti-Doping Project,” said Mr. Bańka. They speak for themselves. I would like to congratulate our partners in the European Union and Europol for their support and confidence in this project. This extraordinary initiative demonstrated what is possible when law enforcement and anti-doping organizations come together to protect clean sport. By combining the arrest and seizure power of law enforcement agencies with the specific anti-doping knowledge of anti-doping organizations, we have achieved unprecedented results. It's fair to say that criminal gangs dealing in performance-enhancing drugs and their clients who wish to cheat the system are under pressure.
“To call this project a success would be an understatement. The success of the operations carried out by the Polish Anti-Doping Agency set the tone while demonstrating the type of impact these coordinated efforts can have. The level of collaboration and cooperation between WADA, anti-doping organizations and law enforcement agencies has been incredible. We look forward to expanding this project to Asia and Oceania in the coming years, and we are confident that this initiative will continue to deter producers and distributors of performance-enhancing drugs.
To recognize the impact of the organizations involved in the EU I&I project, a ceremony rewarded several organizations, including:
- Law enforcement agencies in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Slovenia for their work in dismantling drug trafficking networks;
- The NADO of Greece and the Greek police for the excellence of their collaboration; And
- The Polish Anti-Doping Agency and the Polish police, which carried out 38 operations leading to the dismantling of 14 illicit laboratories and several tons of DEP seizures (some of which were announced in June 2023).
“The impact and effectiveness of the European Intelligence and Investigation Department's Anti-Doping Project cannot be underestimated,” said Mr. Younger. The results are already impressive and don't even take into account the dozens of operations still in progress. We look forward to continuing to build on the project's achievements in Europe while beginning to expand into other regions around the world. WADA I&I has already started discussions on the next phase with our partners at INTERPOL, Sport Integrity Australia and Drug Free Sport New Zealand to expand this successful concept to Asia and Oceania. We look forward to following the expansion of this impactful project in the years to come. »
Learn more about the Annual Symposium
The annual Symposium brings together anti-doping practitioners from international federations, national and regional organizations, anti-doping organizations and major event organizations, as well as athletes, governments, WADA-accredited laboratories, units management of the athlete's passport, service providers, researchers and international media. THE Programs includes a total of 15 informative and interactive sessions that cover a wide range of anti-doping topics.
Learn more about European Intelligence and Investigations Anti-Doping Project
In June 2022, WADA received a grant from the European Commission to increase anti-doping intelligence and investigation capacity in Europe, reduce the prevalence of doping in sport and maximize the health benefits of young Europeans playing clean sport. The project involved 51 anti-doping organizations and 48 law enforcement agencies in Europe.
Learn more about the AMA 25th Anniversary Gala
Later today, WADA will host a 25th anniversary gala that will bring together symposium participants and other guests to celebrate the achievements of WADA and the global anti-doping community.
