In a bid to fight Paralympic doping, Peter Van de Vliet, medical and scientific director of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC), recently visited the headquarters of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in Montreal, Canada, to discuss how IPC members are complying with the World Anti-Doping Code (WADC). The IPC membership includes participating nations’ National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) and International Paralympic Sport Federations (IPSFs).
During the visit, Paralympics stakeholders convened to coordinate plans to test athletes outside of competition, and to plan various Vancouver 2010 Paralympics-related activities, including the collection of athletes’ location information. They also coordinated plans for activities by the WADA independent observer team and the WADA outreach program. Van de Vliet also visited the Canadian WADA laboratory, the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS), Montreal, where he reviewed operations and protocols. INRS will have a fully operational and accredited laboratory in Vancouver during the Games.
IPC members also provided expertise for several WADA educational programs, such as the “Sport Physician Toolkit” and the “Doping Control Officer Training Toolkit.” Meeting participants, including the Vancouver 2010 Organizing Committee (VANOC), also discussed issues including the development of technical guidelines for doping-control officers.
Stuart Kemp, WADA testing coordinator for the IPC, said that the meeting was both timely and helpful for the fight against doping.
“As the Vancouver Games draw near,” Kemp said, “it is particularly important to keep in close contact with the IPC to ensure a coordinated anti-doping effort related to testing, education, and awareness, and this meeting provided a good foundation for this cooperation. WADA continues to support the IPC’s anti-doping activities and will be working closely with the IPC as well as VANOC and other international partners in order to ensure that all measures are taken to combat doping in Paralympic Sport both in Vancouver and beyond.”
