Since the outbreak of the pandemic, concerns have been raised both in NZ and internationally over the ability of anti-doping agencies like WADA and USADA, to operate effectively.
Lockdown has effectively stopped drug testing in most of the world. But in the ongoing battle to combat drug cheats, does this represent a threat or an opportunity?
Well maybe both, but there are interesting developments in the US with a trial under way for athletes to self-test using test kits sent to athletes and AV technology programs for the verification of blood and urine samples, the latter under appropriate privacy controls.
The New York Times ( April 15 2020) reported “Though the main short-term benefit would be minimizing doubts about whether athletes are adhering to the rules in the absence of traditional sample collectors, the long-term goal of the virtual program is more ease and less intrusiveness in drug testing.” To see more, read the whole, article here
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/15/sports/olympics/coronavirus-drug-testing.html
Drug Free Sport NZ head, Nick Paterson, has indicated NZ will be looking at the results of the trial to see if it can be adopted here. https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/sport/2020/04/home-self-test-kits-the-future-of-drug-testing-in-sports.html
I strongly endorse the work of DFSNZ including their Education program details for which can be found here https://drugfreesport.org.nz/what-we-do/education/
