Richard Pound, the founder and first president of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), which has also been a member of the IOC since 1978, made a loud statement through the agency. Reuters.
The lawyer argues that if American law enforcement crosses the line where they begin arbitrarily bypassing WADA in a doping investigation into Chinese swimmers, the United States will lose the right to host the 2028 and 2034 Summer and Winter Games, respectively.
Americans refer to their own “Rodchenkov Law,” named after controversial Russian WADA whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov.
This law was passed by the U.S. Senate in 2020 and allows Americans to prosecute those who violate WADA rules around the world.
If U.S. law enforcement believes that an individual or entity violated anti-doping rules at a major tournament involving American athletes, they have the right to sentence the defendant to 10 years in prison or impose a fine of $250,000 for an individual or $1 million for a legal entity.
But Pound believes this U.S. national law contravenes WADA rules and threatens the integrity of the global anti-doping system.
The Americans are trying to dictate their will to the IOC and WADA, as well as to other countries, by arbitrarily reviewing the results of anti-doping investigations and threatening to imprison certain athletes and officials.
For this reason, the management of the Association of International Summer Olympic Federations (ASOIF) even stated that they were afraid to send some employees to the Congress in the USA on the grounds that they could be arrested under the “Rodchenkov Act”.
“You’ve already seen the ASOIF statement that says, ‘The situation is serious and the US could actually be banned from a lot of competitions,’” Pound said. — “The ‘Rodchenkov Act’ is not in compliance with WADA anti-doping rules. My guess is that there will be a hearing on this case and the US will be found to be in non-compliance with WADA. That means they won’t be able to host the Olympic Games.”
Pound said the IOC will likely delay making a final decision on whether the 2034 Winter Games will be held in Salt Lake City.
This was originally planned to be announced as part of the IOC Congress next week.
Pound stressed that the US investigation into the Chinese swimmers was unlawful even under the “Rodchenkov Act”.
To fall under U.S. jurisdiction, the anti-doping rule violation must occur at a major tournament involving Americans. By “major,” we mean competing against athletes from three countries outside the United States.
“If you look at it in context, it’s a national competition, it’s a tournament in China, and there are no Americans within 6,000 miles,” Pound said. “Now all of a sudden they’re trying to classify it as a violation of the Rodchenkov Act, and it even looks bad.”
What caused the conflict between the US and WADA?
A full-scale conflict between the United States and the World Anti-Doping Agency began in April 2024.
The American edition of The New York Times then reported that shortly before the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for the banned drug trimetazidine, which led to figure skater Kamila Valieva being disqualified for four years.
However, WADA accepted the Chinese side’s explanation that trimetazidine accidentally entered the swimmers’ bodies due to contamination at home and allowed all athletes to participate in the Games.
The United States felt that WADA and the International Olympic Committee had failed in their duties and launched its own investigation, citing the “Rodchenkov Act.” The Justice Department and even the FBI intervened in the case.
World Aquatics president Brent Nowitzki has been summoned to a US court to testify in a doping case against Chinese swimmers.
Russia Doesn’t Believe US Will Be Punished
Famous figure skating coach Tatyana Tarasova said that WADA would not dare to take the Olympic Games from the United States.
“Nobody can deprive the United States of this right; it is a great sports country. You don’t need to dope; then nothing will affect you. I have worked in elite sports for decades and I can say that you can do it without doping, without beating everyone,” Tarasova said in a commentary. TASS.
The coach noted that he would not be happy if the United States actually lost the right to host the Games, as Russia would not be getting these Olympics anyway.
Three-time Olympic figure skating champion Irina Rodnina spoke in the same spirit.
“Each country has its own internal law, let them solve it. We want to look at it, our showdown is already over. “I am sure that the Americans will not be deprived of the right to host the Olympics,” Rodnina said. “Match TV”.
What are you thinking?
Source: Gazeta
Gregory Robert is a sports aficionado and a writer for “Social Bites”. He provides in-depth coverage of the latest sporting events and trends, offering a unique and knowledgeable perspective on the world of sports.