WADA to audit Russian anti-doping agency (RUSADA) in December

Image Courtesy: Twitter/@rusada

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said on Tuesday that it would audit Russia`s anti-doping agency RUSADA in December in order to ensure that it remains compliant following its conditional reinstatement last month.

RUSADA was suspended in 2015 after a WADA-commissioned report that outlined evidence of massive state-backed, systematic doping in Russian athletics, allegations which Moscow has denied at every stage despite allegations from different sections.  

WADA readmitted RUSADA last month, angering sports bodies around the globe, but said that a failure to allow access to stored urine samples at the Moscow anti-doping laboratory by the year`s end would lead to a renewed ban. 

WADA Compliance Review Committee Update: https://t.co/ysn3Ksk8uL — WADA (@wada_ama) October 16, 2018

WADA said in a statement that it would conduct a follow-up compliance audit of Moscow-based RUSADA on Dec. 11-12. Russia`s athletics federation, which remains suspended over the 2015 report, last month filed an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the decision by global athletics body IAAF to extend its suspension.

The status of Russia`s athletics federation will be discussed at the next IAAF Council meeting in Monaco in December with fans demanding an effective conclusion to the highly controversial saga.