“We detect cheating much quicker now”

"FINA is proud to say that it has been in the forefront of this battle for many years now. Many of the rules contained in the World Anti-Doping Code were inspired from the FINA rules existing before the creation of the Code. We win many battles, but the war is virtually endless; however, we must note with satisfaction that the time between the creation of new cheating methods and the time of available technology to detect them is constantly being reduced. This certainly discourages the less honest and gives us tools to fight on a more efficient way against doping in sport."

“It’s about quantity and quality of controls”

"The battle is demanding but European Athletics will continue to be a relentless and leading organisation in this battle to secure fairness in sport. We are 100 percent behind the IAAF, the world governing body for athletics, the International Olympic Committee and WADA in the fight against doping in athletics. Athletes who cheat should never be comfortable that they will avoid detection, and today we are more equipped than ever to catch these cheats who bring disrepute to our sport. We strive to provide the best possible environment for drug-free competition at all European Athletics events. We must ensure a clean sport and fairness amongst all competitors. One way is to search for cheating athletes through doping controls. As part of European Athletics’ drive to eradicate doping from our sport, we are continuously increasing and improving the quality of controls in all our events with pre and in-competition tests, and also educating our athletes in this area."

“The Code has changed everything”

"Let’s be realistic! This will never be a “winning” battle in the sense that one cannot expect to completely eradicate doping in sport, as it is a societal phenomenon and cheating, or trying to beat the system, is part of human nature. However, the sports movement has made tremendous progress in implementing the World Anti-Doping Code. In the course of one year only, in 2011, the number of SportAccord IF Members developing comprehensive anti-doping programmes in full compliance with the Code rose from 24% to 96%. There are ongoing improvements towards better practices and more efficient and higher quality target testing, including better collaboration with national anti-doping organisations and an increased use of the Athlete Biological Passport and intelligence. This evolution is an absolute requirement in order to overcome the new challenges brought about by sophisticated cheaters and easy access to performance enhancing drugs through the internet. Education is of course also key in promoting doping-free sport as shown by the sports movement’s active involvement in many programmes to increase awareness and encourage prevention, especially when addressing the younger generations of athletes."