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UK Sport launches drug results database

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UK Sport Press Release 24 February 2004

UK Sport, the body responsible for promoting ethically fair and drug-free sport in the UK, has today launched a new online database for the reporting of positive test results. This is the latest move towards compliance with the World Anti-Doping Code, which comes into place in August.

Available via the UK Sport website @ www.uksport.gov.uk/drugs, the database includes details of all findings that have been through the entire disciplinary process from the start of the current testing year (April 2003). Over time, this will build up into a full historical record of the testing programme. The database is searchable by date of test, sport, governing body, and class and substance of drug, and provides details of the sanctions handed out for doping offences. Cases will be added to the database 20 days after the governing body’s disciplinary process has been completed.

John Scott, UK Sport’s Acting Director of Drug-Free Sport, said: "We want to make the testing process as open and transparent as possible, without compromising its effectiveness. In the UK we have one of the most comprehensive and highly regarded anti-doping programmes in the world. We have nothing to hide, and anything that can be done to remove the cloud of secrecy often associated with drug testing is a positive thing."

The new database means that UK Sport will no longer release details of cases before the governing body has completed its disciplinary procedures, as was sometimes the case under the previous reporting method. Quarterly summaries will continue to be produced, providing a sport-by-sport breakdown of the number of tests carried out during that period.

Scott added: "The main driver behind this change is to protect the right of an athlete who provides a positive finding to have a fair hearing. In some instances, releasing information on a finding before due process had been completed led to media speculation about the identity of the individual concerned, even though UK Sport has never publicly released the name of any competitor. We hope that, under this new system, such speculation will end as this is clearly unfair on the individual who has a right to anonymity while their case is being dealt with."

The database, believed to be one of the first of its kind in the world, means that UK Sport’s results reporting meets the standards set out in the World Anti-Doping Code. This states that "no later than twenty days after it has been determined in a hearing that an anti-doping rule violation has occurred, or such hearing has been waived, or the assertion of an anti-doping rule violation has not been timely challenged, the anti-doping organisation responsible for results management must publicly report the disposition of the anti-doping matter".

Scott said: "We are working extremely hard on implementing the Code in the UK, and this is an important step on the road towards full compliance. There is still much to be done but thanks to the commitment being shown by the team at UK Sport, and their counterparts at the national governing bodies, rapid progress is being made."

The launch of the new database came as UK Sport released the latest set of results from the anti-doping programme. The figures, which cover the period from 1 October to 31 December 2003, show that 1,284 tests have been carried out across 28 sports. Governing bodies receiving most tests during this period have been the Football Association (505), UK Athletics (132) and Rugby Football League (76).

For the nine months from April 2003, a total of 4,075 tests have been carried out – 2,437 (59.8%) at events and 1,638 (40.2%) out-of-competition, either at squad training sessions or as part of the 'anywhere, anytime’ testing programme that is run with certain sports.

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