February 13 – World anti-doping officials have expressed their alarm at the lack of drug testing in Spanish football, saying there have been no tests carried out for the last 11 months.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) says it finds the situation in La Liga and the whole of Spanish sport “alarming”.
Just under a year ago, The National Anti-Doping Organisation of Spain (AEPSAD) was declared “non-compliant” and its WADA-accredited laboratory in Madrid shut down. Since then it has been up to individual sports to organise proper testing but WADA insists football has lagged behind.
A WADA statement read: “The lack of testing in a country with one of the leading football leagues worldwide for a period of almost 12 months is alarming, and will do little to instil confidence in clean sport at a time when it is needed most.
“After AEPSAD was declared Code non-compliant on 19 March 2016, WADA encouraged an agreement between AEPSAD and International Sport Federations (IFs) that would ensure testing would be carried out on national level athletes in Spain during the period of non-compliance.
“It is deeply disappointing that some International Federations did not sign the agreement, as this has prevented effective anti-doping programs from being run at the national level in Spain in a number of sports [during this period of non-compliance].
“It should be noted that whilst the WADA-accredited laboratory in Madrid is currently suspended (as a result of AEPSAD being declared non-compliant, and pursuant to Article 4.4 of the International Standard for Laboratories), the WADA-accredited laboratory in Barcelona is still operating fully and therefore continues to be able to receive and analyse samples pursuant to world anti-doping rules.”
AEPSAD insist WADA’s figures are wrong, countering that “57 football players from the first division have undergone tests” since the start of this season.
The body also blamed FIFA and UEFA for not taking over drug testing in football after Wada declared it non-compliant last March.
“AEPSAD requested of FIFA and UEFA, following a proposal of Wada, the signing of an agreement so that these international federations would take over the anti-doping controls during AEPSAD’s non-compliance period,” the statement said.
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