World Anti-Doping Agency shuts down Africa's only doping testing lab

WADA

ATHLETICS World Anti-Doping Agency shuts down Africa's only doping testing lab

Abigael Wafula 14:09 - 07.03.2024

The World Anti-Doping Agency has shut down the only doping testing lab in Africa following a series of errors in the method of testing for athlete doping.

The World Anti-Doping Agency has suspended operations at Africa’s sole accredited laboratory, the Bloemfontein lab in South Africa.

WADA announced that the lab will be suspended for six months following a series of errors in the method of testing for athlete doping and multiple non-conformities with international standards.

As per Africa Soccer, the samples collected from athletes will now be transferred to another WADA-accredited laboratory since WADA has prohibited the Laboratory from carrying out any anti-doping activities, including analyses of urine and blood samples, except analysis related to the Athlete's Biological Passport hematological module.

This is to ensure continued high-quality sample analysis, but also to maintain athletes’ confidence in this process and the broader anti-doping system. The nearest lab to South Africa is located in Qatar.

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These labs can also participate in testing all future samples collected from athletes all over Africa, as part of a global anti-doping program before the upcoming Olympic Games in Paris, France which begin in late July.

WADA said restrictions on Bloemfontein’s analytical testing method under the Mass Spectrometry technique were first implemented in September last year due to the “Gas Chromatography / Combustion / Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (GC/C/IRMS) analytical method.”

The agency, headquartered in Montreal, said that multiple non-conformities in Bloemfontein’s operations were observed last month by a committee of experts advising the agency.

All testing at Bloemfontein was suspended from last Friday, although the suspension could be lifted before the six-month period if the lab complies with required international standards as per WADA.

However, reports have argued that collecting samples from remote training centers and transporting them over long distances to labs poses risks of sample degradation and unfit testing.

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