A LOOK BACK TO 2021: THE ANNUAL ISSF ANTI-DOPING REPORT
As we have done in the past, and it order to fulfill ISSF’s reporting obligations as a Signatory to the World Anti-Doping Code, this first edition of the IPOD takes a look back on the previous year and provides all readers, and WADA, with a summary of ISSF’s anti-doping activities.
The IPOD offers the following report on the ISSF’s 2021 Anti-Doping Program in the form of a simple Q & A (Questions and Answers).
Of course, because COVID-19 affected many of our scheduled competitions. Luckily the Summer Olympics were able to be held, but many other events were cancelled or rescheduled..
Therefore, these numbers are representative of the unpredictable competition schedule and testing that inevitably occurred out of the same.
How many IN-competition doping controls did ISSF undertake in 2021?
Total number of In competition in ISSF events: 306
How many Out-of-competition doping controls did ISSF undertake in 2021?
The total number of out-of-competition doping controls undertaken by ISSF in 2021: 47
How many doping controls were undertaken by ISSF in total in 2021?
The total amount of urine samples collected both in and out of competition in 2021 is: 353
Note: ISSF only conducts urine tests as it has been confirmed by WADA further to a physiological risk assessment and sports specific analysis that blood testing is not necessary in shooting sport.
How many anti-doping rule violations occurred and were decided at the international level in 2021?
- There was 1 International Level Anti-Doping Rule Violation reported and adjudicated at the International Level in 2021.
- The ADRV involved a diuretic and the Athlete was sanctioned with a 2-months period of ineligibility.
How many missed tests or failure to submit whereabouts information cases were reported in 2022?
There were 0 whereabouts failures and/or missed tests asserted against ISSF Registered Testing Pool Athletes in 2021.
How many athletes in the ISSF Registered Testing Pool (RTP) at the end of the year?
At the end of 2021 (Quarter 4, 2021), there were 16 athletes in the ISSF RTP.
As always, the athletes included in the RTP are listed on the ISSF Anti-Doping page on the ISSF website.
How many athletes were included in the ISSF Testing Pool (TP) in 2021?
Up until the end of Tokyo 2021 Summer Olympic Games there were 32 athletes in the ISSF TP.
LOOKING AHEAD TO 2022…
ISSF is steadfast in implementing its anti-doping program and promoting drug-free sport.
Accordingly, and further to the positive feedback received from WADA further to the Code Compliance Questionnaire audit completed last year, ISSF shall continue to tackle all anti-doping issues with renewed determination and conviction in 2021, especially because it is an Olympic year.
The ISSF Test Distribution Plan (TDP)
The ISSF Anti-Doping Committee has successfully devised its Test Distribution Plan (TDP) with the objectives of planning and implementing the distribution of doping controls both in-competition and out-of-competition. The purpose of the TDP is to effectively detect, deter and prevent doping practices in shooting sport throughout the competition calendar.
Prior to outlining its TDP, a mandatory physiological risk assessment of doping in shooting sport was once again expertly and knowledgeably undertaken by the ISSF Anti-Doping and Medical Committees.
The TDP was elaborated based on the ISSF’s Anti-Doping Committee unique understanding, knowledge and appreciation of shooting sport and its athletes.
It is interesting to note that an in-depth historical assessment was conducted in 2021 concluding beta blockers have been the performance enhancing prohibited substance used by shooting sport athletes with the most prevalence both at the international and national level. Diuretics come in second in the list of prevalence – and ISSF underlines that anti-doping rule violations related to the use of Diuretics could for the most part be avoided by Athletes simply applying for Therapeutic Use Exemptions. ISSF - International Shooting Sport Federation - issf-sports.org
ISSF’s TDP complies with the World Anti-Doping Code and the International Standard for Testing and Investigations and respects the ISSF Anti-Doping Rules. The TDP shall be implemented by all ISSF Event Organisers and ISSF Technical Delegates throughout the calendar year. It shall also be evaluated, modified and updated periodically, as required, by the ISSF.
The Athlete Biological Passport
The ISSF believes that although a typical doping control approach based on the detection of prohibited substances or their metabolites in an athlete’s sample remains an effective approach to combat doping in shooting sport, it has limitations when an athlete may be using substances on an intermittent and low-dose basis.
Furthermore, notwithstanding all the advances that have been made in this field, it is hard to argue that new substances or modifications of prohibited substances (designer drugs) or methods continue to be difficult to detect by conventional analytical means. In fact, doping regimes have become much more scientifically planned and have taken full advantage of the weaknesses in traditional protocols.
These elements, among others including requirements under the Code, endorsed ISSF’s decision to implement a more sophisticated and complementary strategy to effectively fight doping in shooting sport in addition to traditional doping controls: the Athlete Biological Passport (ABP).
ISSF adopted the steroidal module of the ABP at the end of 2017 and is steadfast in its belief that the implementation of the ABP continues keep our anti-doping rule violations low by not only deterring potential cheaters but by making all our athletes more accountable.
ISSF trusts that it has properly integrated the ABP its existing doping control program by weighing all factors including the required resources and capacity to operate such a program. As such, you can all expect for ISSF to continue to build is ABP database in and to use it to complement all its other anti-doping initiatives effectively and efficiently.
ISSF thanks the Cologne Laboratory for its great work as the ISSF’s Athlete Passport Management Unit.
Doping controls
The TDP governs which method of testing shall be utilised in the course of each Championship or out-of-competition. ISSF conducts a combination of random doping controls, targeted doping controls and requisite doping controls (World Records, Olympic Games Quota Places etc.).
Various factors, criteria and variables lead to the athlete selection process. These include but are not limited to athlete results and rankings, the ISSF’s Testing Intelligence Officer’s gathering and monitoring of relevant data and information, and totally random selections.
With the assistance of qualified National Anti-Doping Organisations teams and Doping Control Service Providers, ISSF shall carefully over-see the carrying out all doping controls throughout , notably in the lead up to the Tokyo Olympic Games, to determine if both the amount of doping controls being conducted in-competition and out-of-competition and the doping control selection methods applied adequately fulfill the objectives of the TDP.
The intention is to conduct roughly the same amount of both in-competition doping controls in as in 2021. Quota places for Paris 2024 will start being distributed and as usual all such athletes will be tested.
You can expect the ISSF to report on the outcome of its 2022 testing program at the beginning of 2023.
Education
- Ongoing initiatives
Every year, throughout the year, ISSF urges all its athletes, all its national federations and everyone involved in shooting sport, be it athlete support personnel, trainers, doctors, parents, etc. to get educated or better informed on anti-doping.
To this end, ISSF has established many educational vehicles through which it disseminates anti-doping information. The following are ongoing initiatives:
- The Information Portal On Doping (IPOD) is regularly being posted on the Athlete’s Page on the ISSF website and in the anti-doping section. The IPOD serves both as an information medium and as a reminder to all individuals involved in shooting sport to respect various responsibilities and obligations with regards to anti-doping. All past editions of the IPOD can be downloaded here https://www.issf-sports.org/theissf/antidoping/issf_ipod_article.ashx
- The ISSF website provides a wealth of information on doping, rules and regulations, answers to common questions and various links to all relevant WADA documents and anti-doping materials. Some of the materials can be found here:
- With the support of the ISSF Athletes Committee ISSF hopes to reach a wider range of athletes and gain greater support for its many anti-doping initiatives. We will of course continue to post all future editions of the IPOD not only on the Anti-Doping Page but also on the Athletes Page on the ISSF website. https://www.issf-sports.org/athletes.ashx
- The WADA website and ADEL have valuable materials for athletes, coaches, trainers etc. All of these can be downloaded for free from the ADEL website Anti-Doping Education and Learning (wada-ama.org) and the WADA website (www.wada-ama.org).
- All shooting athletes and support personnel are also encouraged to sign up for and use ADEL. ADEL is an online anti-doping platform that offers interactive and informative education modules for everyone involved in sport.
- ADEL is offered in many languages and this should simplify the completion of the module.
- Please visit Anti-Doping Education and Learning (wada-ama.org)
- In order for ISSF to monitor your athletes’ mandatory successful completion of modules it is important that ISSF is designated as the relevant federation/organization on the ADEL registration page.
- The facilitating of ongoing cooperation between NADO and RADO’s and national federations also remains a priority. ISSF encourages NADOs to be proactive in reaching out to their national shooting federations in order to disseminate anti-doping education to national and regional level athletes, specially the juniors, via the national federation’s elected Education Information Officer.
Remember that the goal is to foster and open the communication lines between national federations and their NADO – in your country’s primary language - so that you may work together in the common goal of educating national-level shooting athletes. Therefore,
Ø If your national federation has identified its Education Information Officer and that individual has not yet been contacted by your NADO or RADO, please also inform Doris at doris@issf-sports.org and she will assist in facilitating this initial introduction.
Ø If your national federation has not identified its Education Information Officer, we ask that you do so at your earliest convenience and inform Doris doris@issf-sports.org.
- Upcoming initiatives
The ISSF will follow its Education Plan and implement its many educational initiatives.
The ISSF Medical Committee will be posting a variety of health-related articles on its Athletes Page in the Anti-Doping Section of its website which may not be related to anti-doping, but which seek to educate athletes on better mental and physical health practices, including the avoidance of performance enhancing drugs.
If you have any good ideas that can help disseminate the anti-doping message to our athletes and coaches via social media, please do not hesitate to contact us at doris@issf-sports.org and share your ideas.
Anti-Doping Rules
A revised World Anti-Doping Code came into effect on January 1, 2021. https://www.wada-ama.org/en/resources/the-code/2021-world-anti-doping-code.
This means that the ISSF Anti-Doping Rules were also revised and updated as of January 1 2021.
Everyone involved in shooting should and must get acquainted with the applicable Anti-Doping Rules and more importantly understand their respective responsibilities and obligations under these same Rules. As we are all bound by the same rules, it continues to be up to each of us to implement all the elements of the ISSF Anti-Doping Program, both in theory and in practice, as well as to comply with our respective obligations under the ISSF Anti-Doping Rules and the World Anti-Doping Code.
As ISSF has repeated time and time again…. Ignorance of the rules is never a defence.
Because you are all bound by the ISSF Anti-Doping Rules, ISSF invites you to carefully read them and to acknowledge all your respective obligations under these Rules. They can be downloaded off the ISSF website getfile.aspx (issf-sports.org).
ISSF always welcomes any questions any IPOD reader may have about the meaning or impact of any provision of its Anti-Doping Rules. Please remember that it is always better to ask questions and be well informed than to risk the potentially devastating consequences of being ill-informed.
Final words:
If ISSF is proud of the work it continues to accomplish in carrying out its Code-compliant anti-doping program, it is equally proud to acknowledge the work that each of you has accomplished in 2021.
ISSF’s Anti-Doping Report would not be complete if it did not recognize the hard work of:
- All ISSF national federations who respect their reporting and results management obligations and actively educate their athletes on the dangers of using prohibited substances.
- All medical staff who must be mindful of the Prohibited List, offering Code-compliant consultations and properly filing out complete and timely TUE applications for international -level athletes.
- All athlete support personnel who deter athletes from using performance enhance substances by emphasizing the importance of proper training and nutrition and the adoption of ethical sporting values.
- ISSF’s Athlete Passport Management Unit, the Cologne Laboratory, for its expertise and collaboration.
- All ISSF Event Organisers and especially ISSF Technical Delegates who are committed and work hard to successfully carry out the ISSF Test Distribution Plan.
- All ISSF RTP athletes who submit timely and accurate whereabouts information; and,
- All athletes, at any level, who have made a personal decision to not use prohibited substances or methods to enhance their performance and discouraged others to do so as well.
ISSF THANKS EACH OF YOU for taking your responsibilities regarding anti-doping seriously and for protecting the integrity of shooting sport, for promoting the health and well-being of all ISSF athletes and for generally respecting and honouring the intrinsic values of sport.