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Wada resists American allegations

Witold Banka has been leading the world anti-doping agency Wada since the beginning of the year. The former 400 meter runner came to the post as a politician, in Poland he was responsible for tourism and sport between 2015 and 2019. Less than half a year in office, Banka faces the political strategy with which the United States government, under its President Donald Trump, acts against international organizations from Unesco to the World Health Organization; Withdrawal and exit from financing.

The Office for National Drug Control Policy under Trump’s “Drug Czar” Jim Carroll had proposed in a report to the Congress in Washington to cancel the transfer of $ 2.7 million annually to the Wada or in any case, to cut it sharply, and to list a long list of reasons that largely amount to the accusation that Washington is paying an awful lot of money to an organization without its performance being such that Washington is satisfied with it: Wada is not independent Enough, she does not succeed in enforcing her own rules and protecting clean athletes: “American taxpayers should get a return in the form of clean sports, fair play, effective management of the global anti-doping system and an adequate voice at Wada decision making, ”Carroll said. The best example: dealing with Russian state doping.

Last Friday, Banka replied, as indignant as it was smug. He sincerely hoped to be able to work with the Americans in the future instead of having to defend the Wada against “unsubstantiated attacks” – but Wada’s corrections and comments to the original 19-page report have grown to 46 pages. In addition to comments on the progress of the reform in the own organization and the amazement that the own statements were not passed on to the congress (“As it is said: don’t let the good story be ruined by the truth”, writes Banka) the anti-doping agency is not without cunning that Canada will pay more to Wada for 2019 and 2020 than the United States.

The confrontation should not be over so quickly. The “Rodchenkov Act”, named after the former Moscow laboratory manager and now the leniency witness Grigory Rodchenkov, who is living in the American witness protection program, is in the legislative process. International sports associations are very concerned about the intention to criminalize the doping of international athletes in competitions against American athletes. Travis Tygart, chief of the American anti-doping agency, is a strong supporter of the legislative initiative, the report from Carroll’s agency is “the last wake-up call to the International Olympic Committee and Wada to solve these problems before it is too late.”

Representatives of the associations repeatedly refer to the conditions in American professional and college sports, whose most popular leagues have not submitted to the Wada rules. Banka suggests to Carroll that the government should do more to protect young athletes – and adjust the rules. The Wada is ready as a partner.

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