Games will never be drug-free: WADA chief

The world of sport has thrown open a classic battle of scientists

Games will never be drug-free: WADA chief

Representative image. Pic/Istock

The world of sport has thrown open a classic battle of scientists. While one set of scientists are finding ways to curb the use of performance enhancing drugs, the other set is meticulously working towards finding ways to successfully let their athletes get away with banned substances.

And World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) chief David Howman knows he has an interesting and a challenging battle at hand.

On one hand, Howman is pleased that his team of scientists have done a considerable amount of work towards curbing the drug abuse menace, which has shamed sports time and again. He feels still a lot needs to be done in this regard.

"We have to keep upgrading our techniques. For, a sportsperson will keep taking risks. They will keep cheating...u00a0 get the best in the business to find ways to not get caught. "As far as saying that there will be a clean Commonwealth Games or Olympic Gamesu00a0-- that would be very dumb of me.

Awareness
"What WADA intends to do is to keep a step ahead of drug cheats. We are aware of means, several of them like micro dosing and testosterone patches, by which a sportsperson can use performance enhancing substances and try and get away. But we are on the ball. We are working on how to detect and eliminate these specialised techniques," Howman said.

Twelve Indian athletes, including seven from the original Commonwealth Games squad were found with samples of banned substances and were subsequently banned by the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA).

But because the banned substance, methylhexaneamine, was shifted from non-specified to the specified category only in the 2011 list of banned substances, WADA was of the opinion that the 12 Indian athletes be treated leniently. NADA then lifted their provisional bans.

Howman, obviously was all praise for NADA. "They are doing a commendable job," he said, adding that in a bid to educate and help athletes, a few members of WADA's reach-out programme will be present at the Delhi Games and have set up a camp in the Games Village to help athletes and officials with any drug-related query.

Did you know?

The World Anti Doping Agency's (WADA) annual budget to curb the menace of performance enhancing drugs in sports is $26 million.

The International Olympic Association (IOA) gives WADA half of that amount, while the rest of the coffer is filled up by governments throughout the world.

To further break down the list of contribution, Asian countries contribute $ three million towards the anti doping programme.

Interestingly, Japan pays half of the three million towards this noble cause. "It is because of Japan's generosity that other Asian countries do not have to bear a lot of pinch," WADA chief David Howman said.