Anti-Doping Back on Capitol Hill with Senate Hearing on May 22
U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) is convening a Senate subcommittee hearing on May 22 over anti-doping enforcement in swimming.
The hearing of the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Technology, and Data Privacy, which Blackburn chairs, is titled “WADA Shame: Swimming in Denial Over Chinese Doping.” It seeks to examine the World Anti-Doping Agency and its effectiveness in, “ensuring international events are free from doping and other performance enhancements, which put U.S. athletes at risk.” The hearing is in part tied to the implications for upcoming Olympics on American soil, the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and the 2034 Winter Games in Salt Lake City.
Among the scheduled witnesses are Olympic swimmer Katie McLaughlin, a silver medalist in the 800 freestyle relay at the Tokyo Olympics, as well as U.S. Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart and Dr. Rahul Gupta, president of GATC Health Corp.
Tygart has been a vocal critic of WADA’s handling of the 2021 determination of environmental contamination affecting 23 Chinese swimmers at a training camp before the Tokyo Olympics that year.
Gupta served as the head of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy during the Biden Administration. He had been the Americas representative on WADA’s executive committee, a seat that is currently empty, and had been the subject of a since-dropped WADA ethics complaint.
From Sen. Blackburn’s office:
“The World Anti-Doping Agency has allowed Communist China and Russia to lie, cheat, and steal, putting American athletes at risk. When Congress used its oversight authority to investigate WADA’s blatant corruption, they acted like they were above the law. When the federal government investigated WADA’s inaction, they tried to strongarm the United States and threaten our hosting of the Salt Lake City Games. As one of the largest financial contributors to WADA, the United Sates deserves answers. My colleagues and I refuse to be silenced in our mission to make certain WADA does not turn a blind eye to corruption. There must be real oversight and accountability at WADA, and this hearing will move us one step closer to ensuring fair competition for all athletes.”
Congressional committees have held hearings on this issue before. Michael Phelps and Allison Schmitt were among the witnesses last summer before the House of Representatives’ Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation. Among the levers that Congress can use is the threat of withholding the U.S.’s annual dues contribution of $3.6 million to WADA, payment of which was suspended by the Biden Administration. Blackburn is a sponsor of a Senate bill, with a matching one in the House, to suspend payment until WADA submits to an audit.
Read more:
- American Swimmers Told of Chinese Doping Violations at Tokyo Olympics
- 23 Chinese Swimmers Cleared To Compete At Tokyo Olympics Where Some Won Gold Despite Positive Drug Tests: Reports
- WADA Releases Statement on Chinese Doping Positives; Threatens Legal Action
- Column: Lack of Transparency in Chinese Doping Tests a Glaring Failure of Anti-Doping Authorities
- ‘What happened to strict liability?’ Adam Peaty Hits Back at WADA over Chinese Doping
- WADA Appoints Independent Prosecutor to Review Handling of China Doping
- Katie Ledecky on Anti-Doping System: Faith at ‘All-Time Low’ (Video)
- Qin Haiyang, Wang Shun, Yang Junxuan Tested Positive for Clenbuterol Prior to 2021 Positives
- ‘Extremely Frustrating’ and ‘Disappointing:’ Lilly King, Other Americans Share Displeasure at Chinese Doping Controversies (VIDEO)
- Michael Phelps, Allison Schmitt Testify Before Congressional Subcommittee on Anti-Doping Measures, WADA
- WADA-Appointed Independent Prosecutor Exonerates WADA in Chinese Doping Case
- Chinese Doping Controversy Hovering Over Paris Games
- Final Report on Chinese Doping Cases Casts Blame on CHINADA But Clears WADA Again