A whirlwind of testing allegiations and sanctions have besmirched the reputations of several countries' athletes and sporting federations. In the run up to Rio 2016, reigning Olympic silver-medallist Maria Sharapova was banned for two years after a positive test for meldonium. Meanwhile, Russia was banned from international athletics competitions following evidence of state-sponsored doping. Finally, retrospective testing in 2016 uncovered 23 failed tests at London 2012 involving six different countries and a further 31 from 2008 in Beijing.
The spotlight tends to fall on the athletes and governing bodies of sport when allegations surface. But coaches and Athlete Support Personnel can be sanctioned for five of the ten different anti-doping rule violations in the World Anti-Doping Code. These include:
- tampering
- possession
- trafficking
- administration
- complicity.
The coach’s role
Senior lecturer at Leeds Beckett University Dr Laurie Patterson has conducted detailed research on anti-doping practices in coaching. “Much of the research into drugs use in sport is obviously focused on the athlete,” she explains. “The coach's voice hasn’t been heard.