Whats being done?
The world of cycling now revolves not only on the bikes and the techniques used to increase a team’s performance legally, but also no making sure that none of the athletes are using illegal means to win races. There are now many organizations that are in charge of making sure that cyclists are staying clean not only during races but during their training as well. The World Anti-Doping Agency, the United States Anti-Doping Agency, and the Anti-Doping Administration and Management System are just some of the organizations that are in charge of keeping the world of cycling on a clean and even playing field. Testing for different types of doping has also increased now the use of urine doping and blood doping are not all that is done.
One of the newest and most intrusive ways that cycling has sought to keep the sport clean is the Anti-Doping Administration and Management System. This is a new system where athletes can be called upon at any time to take a random drug test. (Francis) “They can turn up at ANY hour on any day of the year to test me and 'surprise' me, but in that hour, I MUST be where I state I am. Sometimes it’s blood and urine, sometimes just urine. “A team of three doctors will come and test me. They literally watch me go to the toilet, they have to see the urine come out of my body so I can’t use any other sample. “I then have to seal the sample myself so that I can never claim it was tampered with if it came back with dope found in it.” says Cavendish in a recent interview. The system works on a three strike system if you’re clean. If you miss your assigned time or are not at the location that you specify on your site then you will receive a strike. Three strikes and you are declared a doper and will have to serve out a two year suspension form cycling. (Francis)
The United States Anti-Doping Agency has had its hands full in the last couple of months with the Lance Armstrong scandal. Even before Armstrong the USDA has been working tirelessly to make sure that all the athletes of that represent the US are clean not only in cycling but also many other sports. The USDA mission is to “provide deterrence and preservation of sport for athletes, coaches, students, teachers, parents, scientists and more through education and resources; include numerous protections for athletes to ensure that only athletes who are guilty of a doping violation are sanctioned; strive to systematically identify and sanction those individuals who are engaged in the effort to gain an advantage over athletes who are competing clean; and fund pioneering research for the detection of doping substances and techniques, and the pursuit of scientific excellence in doping control.” The USDA has been working with more and more success to find and suspend those who have violated the rules.
The World Anti-Doping Agency is the global organization that is charged with making sure that the world’s athletes are staying clean and are not doping. Since the WADA creation in 1999 it has been testing and suspending athletes for using illegal means to try and improve their results. “WADA’s chief activities focus on several areas emanating from the responsibilities given to the Agency by the World Anti-Doping Code (Code), the core document that provides the framework for anti-doping policies, rules and regulations within sport organizations and among public authorities.” The biggest challenge that the WADA has is trying to find all the different methods that people use to try and cheat he system. EPO and blood doping arte the hardest types of doping for the WADA to prove. EPO is hard because of the many different types that are out there; and blood doping is even harder because the only way to tell is by judging the red blood count of a person based off of what they test last time of at a time when they were “clean”. The world is still having trouble tracking down every person who is doping but thanks to the WADA and many organizations like it the number or doping cases has gone down and athletes are becoming cleaner.
One of the newest and most intrusive ways that cycling has sought to keep the sport clean is the Anti-Doping Administration and Management System. This is a new system where athletes can be called upon at any time to take a random drug test. (Francis) “They can turn up at ANY hour on any day of the year to test me and 'surprise' me, but in that hour, I MUST be where I state I am. Sometimes it’s blood and urine, sometimes just urine. “A team of three doctors will come and test me. They literally watch me go to the toilet, they have to see the urine come out of my body so I can’t use any other sample. “I then have to seal the sample myself so that I can never claim it was tampered with if it came back with dope found in it.” says Cavendish in a recent interview. The system works on a three strike system if you’re clean. If you miss your assigned time or are not at the location that you specify on your site then you will receive a strike. Three strikes and you are declared a doper and will have to serve out a two year suspension form cycling. (Francis)
The United States Anti-Doping Agency has had its hands full in the last couple of months with the Lance Armstrong scandal. Even before Armstrong the USDA has been working tirelessly to make sure that all the athletes of that represent the US are clean not only in cycling but also many other sports. The USDA mission is to “provide deterrence and preservation of sport for athletes, coaches, students, teachers, parents, scientists and more through education and resources; include numerous protections for athletes to ensure that only athletes who are guilty of a doping violation are sanctioned; strive to systematically identify and sanction those individuals who are engaged in the effort to gain an advantage over athletes who are competing clean; and fund pioneering research for the detection of doping substances and techniques, and the pursuit of scientific excellence in doping control.” The USDA has been working with more and more success to find and suspend those who have violated the rules.
The World Anti-Doping Agency is the global organization that is charged with making sure that the world’s athletes are staying clean and are not doping. Since the WADA creation in 1999 it has been testing and suspending athletes for using illegal means to try and improve their results. “WADA’s chief activities focus on several areas emanating from the responsibilities given to the Agency by the World Anti-Doping Code (Code), the core document that provides the framework for anti-doping policies, rules and regulations within sport organizations and among public authorities.” The biggest challenge that the WADA has is trying to find all the different methods that people use to try and cheat he system. EPO and blood doping arte the hardest types of doping for the WADA to prove. EPO is hard because of the many different types that are out there; and blood doping is even harder because the only way to tell is by judging the red blood count of a person based off of what they test last time of at a time when they were “clean”. The world is still having trouble tracking down every person who is doping but thanks to the WADA and many organizations like it the number or doping cases has gone down and athletes are becoming cleaner.