UPDATE- Meat Contamination Cases: WADA amends World Anti-Doping Code from 1 June

On 16 May 2019, the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA’s) Foundation Board decided to amend Article 7.4 of the World Anti-Doping Code (Code) with effect from 1 June 2019, to allow WADA-accredited laboratories to report Atypical Findings (ATFs) for the Prohibited Substance clenbuterol.
 
Under the current version of Article 7.4 of the Code, laboratories may only report analytical testing results for exogenous Prohibited Substances as Adverse Analytical Findings (AAFs) but not as ATFs, which does not allow for investigations to take place when potential meat contamination scenarios arise – as has been the case with clenbuterol.

The purpose of the amendment to Article 7.4 of the Code - which is an interim solution until the 2021 Code and the forthcoming International Standard for Results Management (ISRM) come into effect – is to provide Anti-Doping Organisations (ADOs), such as UK Anti-Doping (UKAD), with the possibility of conducting an investigation when low concentrations of identified Prohibited Substances that are known meat contaminants are detected by Laboratories and reported as ATFs.

WADA has now issued guidance in respect of how this amendment will operate in practice in a notice which can be found here.

This details the reporting instructions for Laboratories depending on the concentration of clenbuterol detected in an athlete’s sample and includes the investigative steps that ADOs must follow in such situations.