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RUSADA advises all sports federations in Russia against doping-abuse in sports

"Sports federations need to understand that the doping testing of athletes may happen both during competitions, as well as during an out-of-competitions period, and the key issue about not issuing a warning in advance," RUSADA Director General Veronika Loginova said

MOSCOW, June 29. /TASS/. International sports federations need to come up with all conditions for the anti-doping services that will be provide for organizing international tournaments, RUSADA Director General Veronika Loginova said on Thursday.

"Sports federations need resorting to obvious measures that are required to provide for the safeguard conditions against doping in sports, as all as in other sports events, organized by [international] federations," Loginova said speaking at an all-Russia session on problems regarding doping abuse in international sports and ways to overcome this threat.

"It must be mandatory explaining officials and the staff of organizations in charge of organizing tournaments and athletes’ accommodation that they are obliged in their services to help with doping control procedures," she said.

"They all need to understand that the doping testing of athletes may happen both during competitions, as well as during an out-of-competitions period, and the key issue about not issuing a warning in advance," Loginova said.

Loginova announced earlier in the day that RUSADA collected a total of 5,082 doping samples from athletes in the first half of 2023.

"RUSADA tests athletes of all levels, regardless their age and region," Loginova said. "As of June 2023, 5,082 doping samples were collected in 20 countries and 77 regions of Russia."

According to the senior anti-doping official, 1,973 probes were collected during competitions, while 3,109 were reported to be taken during the out-of-competition periods.

All doping samples, collected by RUSADA, were probed in laboratories located in seven countries abroad.

RUSADA’s chief Loginova told TASS late last year, that the agency had met its target for 2022 on doping testing of athletes ahead of schedule with the reported figure standing at over 11,000. In all, the agency collected 11,053 doping samples in 2022.

RUSADA inked a cooperation agreement with the Turkish anti-doping laboratory in March 2022, which had valid accreditation from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

WADA President Witold Banka said in March that WADA sanctioned 181 athletes based on data it obtained from the Moscow Anti-Doping Laboratory.