Media information on the ITA Beijing 2022 anti-doping program

The ITA is an international organisation constituted as a not-for-profit foundation, based in Lausanne, Switzerland. Its mission is to manage anti-doping programs, independent from sporting or political powers and any real or perceived conflicts of interest, for International Federations (IFs), Major Event Organisers (MEOs) and all other anti-doping organisations requesting support.

We are a fair, transparent and intelligence-led organisation that has the welfare of athletes, the integrity of events and the reputation of sporting bodies at its heart. We gather together subject experts with significant experience in the field to help support the best sporting experience in compliance with the World Anti-Doping Code and its connected International Standards.

The ITA began its operations in July 2018 as the result of a desire for a united approach to keeping sport clean.

In accordance with the International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s anti-doping regulations applicable for the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, the IOC has handed over its entire anti-doping program to the ITA in order for it to be managed independently by dedicated experts that carry their know-how from one edition of the Games to another. The ITA is not only responsible for handling the pre-Games and Games-time anti-doping programs for all editions of the Olympic Games, but also leads re-analysis and long-term storage projects for the IOC.

In 2021, the ITA has successfully delivered the anti-doping program for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

Click on the image to enlarge.

The ITA’s anti-doping program for Beijing 2022 is divided into the following stages:

Pre-Games

The ITA Beijing 2022 pre-Games Expert Group consisting of a pool of 7 independent experts began working on an extensive risk assessment on a large population of athletes that were likely to qualify for Beijing 2022 from all 15 disciplines in 2021. It considered data such as participating countries, risks and history of doping as well as testing statistics in these countries, the physiological profile of the sport, individual data of the athletes, intelligence received, and other relevant factors. The outcome of this large-scale evaluation were over 5’400 recommendations that the expert group issued to concerned National and Regional Anti-Doping Organisations and International Olympic Winter Federations all over the world with one objective: protecting the integrity of the Olympic Games by promoting a level-playing field and closing potential testing gaps for athletes carrying a certain elevated risk level in the crucial period ahead of the Games.

You can find more information on the ITA’s pre-Games testing program here.

Extended Testing Authority ahead of the Games

The IOC and the ITA have secured an extended testing jurisdiction for the IOC allowing the ITA to conduct additional testing to take place two months ahead of Beijing 2022. This extended jurisdiction will support worldwide testing efforts through doping controls implemented directly by the ITA.

Games-time anti-doping activities

The ITA will continue its intelligence-led pre-Games work on-site in Beijing, Yanqing and Zhangjiakou on the basis of the abovementioned risk assessment, implementing mostly targeted both Out- and In-Competition testing throughout the event, and plans on collecting approximately 2’900 samples. The ultimate number of collected samples will be determined by various factors on the ground. All doping controls are targeted and unannounced.

Long-term storage and re-analysis

All samples collected during Games-time will be stored for up to ten years and can be re-analysed if indicated or through the systematic re-analysis programs that have been implemented for all editions of the Olympic Games. In addition, the ITA has set up a Centralised Long-Term Storage Facility where organisations participating in the Beijing 2022 pre-Games program can store samples that were collected in the lead-up to the Games for free. Please read more about this project here.

In order to deliver a robust anti-doping program for the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, the ITA is collaborating with various organisations. Here is a summary of the roles and responsibilities of each one of them:

The International Testing Agency (ITA)

The ITA is the organisation independently leading the anti-doping program for Beijing 2022. It defines the testing strategy and oversees all anti-doping operations for the event.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC)

The IOC as the Major Event Organiser for the Olympic Games is the Signatory under the World Anti-Doping Code. The ITA is managing the anti-doping program for Beijing 2022 on behalf of the IOC.

The Beijing 2022 Organising Committee (BOCOG)

BOCOG is the operational partner of the ITA on the ground. It is responsible for the management of the anti-doping workforce: Doping Control Officers (DCOs), Blood Control Officers (BCOs), Chaperones, drivers, etc. and the set-up of the anti-doping infrastructure (e.g., Doping Control Stations) and operations on-site.

The Beijing Anti-Doping Laboratory

The WADA-accredited Beijing Anti-Doping Laboratory will analyse the samples collected during the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. The ITA can also decide to send samples to other WADA-accredited laboratories, e.g., for the implementation of further specific analysis or due to other logistical reasons during the period of the Games.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)

WADA, as the global anti-doping regulator, will send a team of independent observers to oversee the anti-doping operations for Beijing 2022 and ensure that the ITA’s program complies with the World Anti-Doping Code and its connected International Standards.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport Anti-Doping Division (CAS ADD)

The CAS ADD is in charge of adjudicating cases referred by the ITA in case of violations of the IOC Anti-Doping Rules. Please find below more information on the legal process in case any rule violations occur.

Other partners

The ITA is also collaborating with the China Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA), whose DCOs and BCOs will make up a majority of the doping control personnel.

The ITA plans on collecting approximately 2’900 urine and blood samples during the Games-time period.

The WADA-accredited Beijing Anti-Doping Laboratory will analyse the samples collected during the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. The ITA can also decide to send samples to other WADA-accredited laboratories, e.g., for the implementation of further specific analysis or due to other logistical reasons during the period of the Games. The ITA will furthermore continue to carry out on IOC’s behalf tests on Beijing 2022 participants before their arrival in and following their departure from China. These samples will also be analysed in other WADA-accredited laboratories.

The ITA will be collecting samples using the Dried Blood Spot (DBS) method for the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. This method only uses a drop of blood collected from a finger that is then placed onto a collection device creating blood spots on the paper it contains. You can find details on the DBS sample collection procedure here. You can find more general information on the DBS method here.

Which type of sample is collected during the Winter Games depends on the type of analysis that the ITA’s risk assessment recommends being performed for an individual athlete.

In addition to the standard analysis for prohibited substances or methods, selected samples will also be analysed for gene doping (again following the recommendations stemming from ITA’s risk assessment).

Samples collected during the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 from all participating delegations under the management of the ITA and the Testing Authority of the IOC will be repatriated to the ITA’s Centralised Long-Term Storage Facility (CLTSF) after the event for storage and potential future re-analysis, as was the case for previous editions of the Games.

When it comes to samples collected during the pre-Games phase, the respective National/Regional Anti-Doping Agencies and International Olympic Winter Sports Federations retain the authority over them. The ITA, with the support of the IOC, has developed a dedicated long-term storage program including the set-up and operations of the CLTSF and the development of the necessary logistics to offer the repatriation and storage to any interested organisation. Whereas participation in this pre-Games long-term storage program is not compulsory, it is strongly encouraged by the ITA, the IOC and WADA.

The ITA will be present with about 17 staff on-site representing all necessary functions to operate the Beijing 2022 anti-doping program. A second team will support the anti-doping operations remotely from the ITA’s headquarters in Lausanne.

The ITA (on behalf of the IOC) is responsible for the results management and subsequent prosecution of Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRV) committed by any athlete, athlete support personnel or other person entered to participate in the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, under the jurisdiction of the IOC and as per the IOC Anti-Doping Rules.

Accordingly, any ADRV (eg. presence/ use of a prohibited substance tampering, refusing sample collection etc.) will be duly processed by the ITA legal affairs department and brought before the Anti-Doping Division of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS ADD) as applicable.

The ITA will publish all anti-doping rule violations following the decision and publication by CAS ADD on this page.

The Anti-Doping Rules for the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 can be found here.

The Arbitration Rules applicable to the CAS Anti-Doping Division can be found here.

The Doping Control Personnel and volunteers acting as Chaperones are under the responsibility of the Organising Committee for Beijing 2022, with whom we work closely regarding the implementation of the ITA-designed anti-doping program.

A majority of the Doping Control Officers (DCOs – including Blood Control Officers (BCOs) with a medical background) that were selected and trained for their mission in China, are from the China Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA), the other part is international DCOs.

All Chinese and international DCOs have graduated from the ITA’s International Doping Control Officer (IDCO) Training & Certification program.

The Chaperones, all Chinese volunteers, have also received specific training to prepare them for their mission during the Winter Games.

The anti-doping personnel implementing ITA’s Beijing 2022 anti-doping program consists of close to 600 Doping Control Officers (DCOs), Doping Control Station Managers, team coordinators and Chaperones.

The foundations of the testing program Beijing 2022 are based upon a physiological/pharmacological risk assessment carried out by the ITA across all sports/disciplines. The risk assessment also takes into account data such as participating countries, risks and history of doping in these countries, testing statistics in these countries as well as intelligence received, and other factors. This risk assessment is a very fine-tuned instrument that the ITA has developed and serves as an indicator to target high-risk sports and countries that we will indeed focus our attention on.

At the current moment, the anti-doping system is not majorly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in the important few months leading up to the Winter Games, even though some competitions might be cancelled or postponed due to the spread of the Omicron variant. The ITA is monitoring the situation carefully through its pre-Games program and can support worldwide testing efforts through the direct implementation of doping controls through the IOC’s extended testing jurisdiction two months ahead of the Winter Games.

While testing is important, the anti-doping community is using other tools that are available to it in the period leading up to the Games, namely the Athlete Biological Passport, long-term sample storage, intelligence and investigations and, of course, prevention and education that is intended to prevent doping from ever happening in the first place.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has issued testing statistics for 2021, showing that “the level of in-competition testing remains lower than in pre-pandemic times, primarily because of fewer events taking place in 2021, the number of out-of-competition samples in the past 12 months is more than for 2019”.

The doping controls will be conducted in full respect of the appropriate safety and hygiene measures as described in the relevant IOC playbook and in strict compliance with all regulations enacted by the Chinese health authorities to protect both athletes and the anti-doping workforce. All doping controls (in- and out-of-competition) will remain unannounced and the ITA plans to implement the original test distribution plan as far as circumstances allow.

Following the successful delivery of the anti-doping program for Tokyo 2020, the ITA already has experience in implementing clean sport measures under the challenging circumstances of the pandemic and the connected restrictions.