The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) reaffirmed its position against the politicization of sport and took a firm stance to support the decision regarding the contamination cases involving 23 swimmers from China at the 19th Annual Symposium on Tuesday.

Chinese athlete competes during the women's 4x100m medley relay final of swimming at the World Aquatics Championships in Fukuoka, Japan, July 30, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

In front of almost 1,000 delegates around the world, WADA president Witold Banka said in his opening speech, "At all stages, WADA was confident that it had done the right thing. We fully cooperated with an investigation into our handling of the cases by an Independent Prosecutor, Mr. Eric Cottier, from Switzerland. In the end, that review conclusively showed that WADA had acted correctly and fairly. It concluded that WADA showed no bias towards China; that its decision not to appeal the cases was reasonable; and that it followed the rules."

23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine due to contamination in early 2021, a case which had been thoroughly investigated and whose conclusion was carefully reviewed and accepted by WADA. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) criticized WADA for accepting the China Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA)'s decision not to punish the athletes.

"Unfortunately, the Chinese swimmers case was treated as an opportunity by a very small number of individuals, particularly in the U.S., to make unfounded allegations against WADA without any supporting evidence," Banka said. "In the process they called into question the integrity of WADA and its team of around 180 dedicated staff members who work hard each day for clean sport. In truth, this criticism was really an extension of a wider, politically motivated attack against the Agency by those with their own motivations and ambitions."

WADA's Executive Committee set up a working group to examine the observations, as well as those of the Anti-Doping Audit Review Committee of World Aquatics on the same topic.

"We have determined that it is useless to argue with people who are unwilling to accept clear evidence, whose only goal is to damage WADA and who have no desire to find a resolution. We have to conclude that they can no longer be thought of as credible clean sport partners. Still, they believe in conspiracy theories. They have doubled down on their claim that there was a cover-up at the highest levels of WADA, World Aquatics, the IOC and the Chinese authorities. And they have done so without a shred of evidence because there is no evidence. How can we take them seriously?" Banka asked.

"The real damage caused by these attacks is on the global anti-doping system itself, not just WADA. They harm all of us in this room, the entire clean sport community and, ultimately, they harm the athletes," he added.

Banka admitted WADA's system is not perfect. "But it shouldn't be used to fulfill political ambitions, as we saw with the Chinese swimmers cases. Again, by accusing WADA of a cover-up without justification or evidence, they are calling into question our integrity. I believe there is no room for such unfairness," he said.

"So, we have taken the decision to move away from the negativity that surrounded these cases. Instead, we want to focus our efforts on strengthening the global anti-doping system that the community has worked hard to build together over 25 years," the president claimed.

WADA will also replace the term "contaminated product" with a much broader definition - "source of contamination" - as this new definition will encompass not only tainted legal products but also cases of accidental transmission.

WADA needs to be improved, Banka mentioned, and the key commitment of WADA is to build a trusted system for the athletes.

"We must all contribute to strengthening the program through the Code and Standards update process. We must address persistent challenges such as contamination. We must harness the potential of artificial intelligence and ensure it is used positively on the anti-doping landscape. We must continue to strengthen the program through better collaboration and the incorporation of cutting-edge technology. We must remain vigilant in areas like cybersecurity and data protection. This will ensure our systems are as secure as they are effective," he said.

Wang Xinzhai, deputy director of CHINADA, welcomed Banka's speech for its clear guideline on the direction of global anti-doping governance system development.

"CHINADA upholds its firm attitude and principle of independence, impartiality, professionalism and openness, and constantly promotes the high-quality development of anti-doping cause. Working in solidarity with relevant anti-doping agencies, international sports organizations and other stakeholders, CHINADA is as always committed to maintaining and strengthening the stability, integrity, unity and improvement of the global anti-doping governance system," Wang said.

Another important event in WADA's calendar is the sixth World Conference on Doping in Sport to be held in Busan, South Korea, in December. Banka said the event will "be key for reflection and renewed commitment".

"Let us remember the ultimate goal: to continue building and maintaining a system in which athletes can trust, a system that is fair, transparent, and unwavering in its pursuit of clean sport," he concluded.