US Senate passes bill to criminalise doping at international sporting events

A bill to criminalise doping at international sporting events has been passed by the United States Senate.

The bill will allow US officials to prosecute individuals found guilty of doping at international sporting functions.

Outgoing President Donald Trump is set to sign the Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act – named after Russian anti-drug activist Grigory Rodchenkov – into law.

Despite the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) showing concerns about the new bill, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) chief, Travis Tygart, described it as a “monumental” achievement in the “fight for clean sports” in America.

WADA’s concerns stem from the legislation unanimously allowing the US to seek prosecution of offenders at all competitions involving American athletes, sponsors, or broadcasters, whether or not they’re played within the United States’ territory.

This bill is targeted towards agents, coaches and officials, rather than athletes, who already have WADA’s strict sanctions to contend with.

Offenders will potentially face penalties including fines of up to $1m or a 10-year prison sentence.

“The act will provide the tools needed to protect clean athletes and hold accountable international doping conspiracies that defraud sport, sponsors, and that harm athletes,” said Tygart.

“It is a monumental day in the fight for clean sport worldwide and we look forward to seeing the act soon become law and help change the game for clean athletes for the good.”

WADA says despite the bill’s obviously “positive elements”, it is concerned the legislation will “disrupt the global legal anti-doping framework.”

“It is likely to lead to overlapping laws in different jurisdictions that will compromise having a single set of anti-doping rules for all sports and all anti-doping organizations under the Wada code,” it added.

The legislation’s exclusion of US professional and college athletes despite being included in the original draft has also been questioned by WADA president, Witold Banka.

“If it is not good enough for American sports, why is it being imposed on the rest of the world?” Asked Banka.

WADA also pointed out concerns about the bill preventing whistleblowers from making a case in the event of a risk of prosecution, but WADA president, Tygart, reassured that the law would “protect whistleblowers from retaliation.”

Dmitry Peskov, spokesman of Kremlin also said that Russia would oppose the legislation, which seems to extend a US jurisdiction beyond its borders.