Drug-testing Faces Legal Challenge

Concern has hit anti-doping officials as a Belgian court will hear a challenge against the legal foundation for which current drug-testing in sport is based.

The court has been asked to decide whether the system that drug-testers use to keep tabs on athletes for testing, called ‘Whereabouts’, breaks European Union privacy laws.

The solicitor leading the challenge, Kristof de Saedeleer, is representing 65 athletes, cyclists, footballers and volleyball players, all who object the Belgian government’s strict anti-doping policies that were amended at the New Year.

The current law is that drug-testers must be able to give tests anywhere at any time, with no notice, which requires these drug-testers to be able to track the athletes. Any athlete on the national testing register must be available for one hour a day during specific times for three months in advance. Registering is done online.

Challengers of the law object to the strict tracking, as failure to be at the computer or be able to answer the phone results in a penalty for the athlete.

The challenge is a concern to anti-doping officials, as a threat to the ‘Whereabouts’ system, claiming it is the only way to ensure fair, cheating-proof tests.

The challenges against the stringent laws within the Belgian government come at the same time as UK Sport welcomed a new review with recommendations about anti-doping policies. Drafted by paralympian Tanni Grey-Thompson, the review was drafted with 400 stakeholders’s suggestions and published 22 recomendations for anti-doping rules.