Anti-Doping and Congress

Two weeks ago Trent Staley posted an article on the AEC Blog from the January Issue of Outside Magazine titled Good Cop, Bad Cop. The article exposes some of the issues that are affected athletes and the ways they are forced to sacrifice in hopes of keeping the sport clean. If you have not yet read this article, please do.

Then last week AZ Senator John McCain held a press conference to talk about a bill he is proposing to require all supplement manufacturers to register the ingredients of each product with FDA. Among those in support of the bill are Bud Selig, Commissioner of the MLB, Travis T. Tygart, CEO of USADA, and the Athletes' Executive Committee's own Kicker Vencil. An article reporting the subject can be found on ESPN.

The concept of this bill is very simple, and that's what makes it so intriguing to me. If the ingredients in all supplements are clearly disclosed, it becomes much easier for athletes to compare the banned substances list to the list of ingredients on a product's package. Ultimately this would be a better situation for athletes across many sports, and could put anti-doping agencies one step closer to having a seal of approval on 'clean' supplements.

Outside Magazine article on Anti Doping

Outside Magazine, January 2010

Good Cop, Bad Cop
WADA, The International agency that oversees drug testing in sports, has done a solid job of cleaning up some rotten games. But a growing number of critics contend that it's become overzealous and arrogant, sometimes trampling the civil liberties of athletes in the process. As the case of Winter Olympian Zach Lund illustrates, they have a point.

http://outside.away.com/outside/culture/201001/zach-lund-wada-1.html

"Lund, who, despite everything, favors dope testing in sports, calls the current system "a witch hunt." He'd like to fight back, to stand up for athlete rights. But Lund shares a problem that many of us, including the U.S. Senate and governments around the world, share: He is still moved by the Olympic dream, and he is willing to put up with anything to fulfill it." - Outside Magazine

This is a pretty good read and while we are always looking for stronger doping controls in our sport and within WADA and USADA, this article sheds light on some short comings of the system and the very real sacrifices elite athletes make in the name of clean sport.

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IRC Updates

Below are a series of updates from the International Relations Committee that may be of interest to you as athletes...

FINA COMMISSION & TECHNICAL COMMITTEE MEETINGS: The following individuals will represent USA Swimming and/or USAS at the upcoming FINA meetings:

Technical Open Water Swimming Committee - October 18th - Steve Munatones

Coaches Commission - October 23-24th - Mark Schubert

Athletes Commission - October 29-30th - Aaron Peirsol

Technical Swimming Committee - November 12-13th - Carol Zaleski & Dale Neuburger

Sports Medicine Committee - December 5-6th - Dr. Jim Miller

FINA Bureau Meeting - January 15-16 - Dale Neuburger

MUTUAL OF OMAHA DUEL IN THE POOL: The 2009 Duel in the Pool will be held on December 19 & 20 in Manchester, England. The venue for the SCM competition is the Manchester Aquatic Centre which hosted the 2002 Commonwealth Games. USA Swimming is sending an A+ team and will be competing against the combined teams of Great Britain, Italy and Germany. German star Paul Biedermann will not be participating due to a prior commitment to compete elsewhere. According to Mike Unger, USA Swimming was intending to compete under the 2010 Swimwear regulations but due to the availability issues this matter remains unresolved at this time. USA Swimming will swim in whatever rules are agreed upon. Our strong preference remains to swim in the new FINA suit rules which are effective in January 2010. The event will be televised in the USA on NBC on Sunday, December 27th from 2-4 pm (ET). More about the 2009 Duel in the Pool at:

http://reachforthewall.com/2009/10/16/suits-and-nations-change-but-usa-vs-europe-on/

ROMA 2009 FINA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS RAN AT $14.2 LOSS : According to SwimNews: The Rome 2009 world championships ran at a 9.5 million euro loss, official reports from Italy reveal today. The specific cost to the Italian swimming federation (FIN) and the city of Rome is put at euros 3.6m. The state will pick up the rest of the bill, media reports suggest. http://www.swimnews.com/News/view/7270

FINA WORLD CUP EVENTS BEGIN --The 2009 FINA World Cup series began last Friday in Durban. The meet is the first of five meets for the 2009 circuit, and the only meet in October following the cancellation of the circuit's 6th meet that was to be in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil next weekend. Dates for the 2009 World Cup are:
-October 16+17: Durban, South Africa
-November 6+7: Moscow, Russia
-November 10+11: Stockholm, Sweden
-November 14+15: Berlin, Germany
-November 21+22: Singapore

Further information on the World Cup series can be found on the FINA website at this link:
http://www.fina.org/project/index.php?option=com_content&task=blogcategory&id=107&Itemid=541

SABIR MUHAMMED & PETER MARSHALL IN SOUTH AFRICA: US National Team athletes Sabir Muhammed and Peter Marshall conducted swim clinics in South Africa prior to their competition sessions during the October FINA World Cup events in Durban, South Africa.

ATHLETES ELECTED TO THE EUROPEAN OLYMPIC COMMITTEE--Croatian swimmer Gordan Kozulj was among the 7 individuals elected to the European Olympic Committees (EOC) Athletes' Commission earlier this month in Moscow. The term for the recent elections is 2009-12.

UK ANTI DOPING AGENCY PROPOSES TO RAID 2010 LONDON OLYMPIC VILLAGE -- UK Anti-Doping agency (UKAD) officials want the right to enter athletes’ accommodation at the London Olympics to search for drugs and the equipment used for banned techniques such as blood boosting. Speaking at last week’s UKAD launch, sports minister Gerry Sutcliffe confirmed that his government is seeking permission from the IOC to allow such raids. Similar tactics used at the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics led to the capture and banning of several members of the Austrian skiing team. “We don't want to criminalize athletes, but it would be fair if it was a condition of entry,” Sutcliffe said. UK Sport has handled anti-doping in Britain for the past 20 years, but it also distributes Lottery funding to elite athletes. UKAD – modeled on the Australian and American independent agencies – will be chaired by a former senior police officer, David Kenworthy, with the head of anti-doping at UK Sport, Andy Parkinson, as chief executive.