By Richard Pagliaro | Friday, July 21, 2017
Tennis Anti-Doping Program will increase drug testing by 60 percent and testing will take place at around double the current number of events.
Photo credit: BNP Paribas Open Facebook
Drug testers will make more house calls and visit nearly twice as many tournaments.
Tennis Anti-Doping Program will increase both in competition and out of competition drug testing, the International Tennis Federation announced in the Tennis Anti-Doping Program’s quarterly report.
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Enhancements to anti-doping efforts aim to collect more samples, test players at more tournaments and strengthen the sample storage policy to permit future re-analysis.
Revisions went into effect on May 1st, which the TADP says will significantly increase the number of tests administered both at tournaments and out-of-competition.
The program announced three primary revisions in its quarterfinal report:
1. Players should experience more in-competition testing. The amount of testing during events will increase by 60 percent and testing will take place at around double the current number of events.
2. More players will be subject to out-of-competition testing. The International Registered Testing Pool, which includes players who are required to provide whereabouts, will be increased by around 30 percent. The amount of out-of-competition testing on IRTP players will increase by around 60 percent.
3. More samples from more players will be stored and subsequently re-analyzed, such as when new prohibited substances, or new tests for existing prohibited substances, are identified, or where intelligence indicates that reanalysis for specific substances is necessary.
Tennis Anti-Doping Program launched two rules changes for 2017:
The existing Independent Tribunal has been replaced by an Independent Panel. The adjudication process is now administered by a body that is independent of tennis.
Provisional suspensions imposed or accepted under the program are now announced to protect players who are not competing from unfounded allegations of doping. This rule was enacted in an effort to minimize the perception that players, who are sidelined due to injury or rehab are might be serving “Silent bans.”
.
2016 Drug-Testing Data
|
2016 |
Total Samples |
Men |
Women |
|
In-competition (urine) |
1,987 |
1,108 |
879 |
|
In-competition (blood) |
252 |
118 |
134 |
|
In-competition (ABP) |
168 |
70 |
98 |
|
Out-of-competition (urine) |
629 |
361 |
268 |
|
Out-of-competition (blood) |
1,202 |
660 |
542 |
|
Out-of-competition (ABP) |
661 |
367 |
294 |
|
Totals |
4,899 |
2,684 |
2,215 |
.
2017 Drug-Testing Data
|
2017 Quarter 1 |
Total Samples |
Men |
Women |
|
In-competition (urine) |
473 |
334 |
139 |
|
In-competition (blood) |
80 |
39 |
41 |
|
In-competition (ABP) |
123 |
65 |
58 |
|
Out-of-competition (urine) |
168 |
91 |
77 |
|
Out-of-competition (blood) |
178 |
95 |
83 |
|
Out-of-competition (ABP) |
179 |
96 |
83 |
|
Totals |
1,201 |
720 |
481 |
|
2017 Quarter 2 |
Total Samples |
Men |
Women |
|
In-competition (urine) |
693 |
397 |
296 |
|
In-competition (blood) |
14 |
8 |
6 |
|
In-competition (ABP) |
78 |
47 |
31 |
|
Out-of-competition (urine) |
79 |
42 |
37 |
|
Out-of-competition (blood) |
79 |
42 |
37 |
|
Out-of-competition (ABP) |
79 |
42 |
37 |
|
Totals |
1,022 |
578 |
444 |
In 2017, only one player—Briton Daniel Evans—has been provisionally suspended due to violation of anti-doping rules. Evans tested positive for cocaine.
The 50th-ranked Evans failed a drug test at the Barcelona Open where he reached the round of 16 before bowing to Dominic Thiem, 7-6 (5), 6-2.
Evans said his cocaine use was recreational rather than performance-enhancing.
"This is a very difficult day for me and I wanted to come here in person and tell you face-to-face I was notified a few days ago that I failed a drugs test in April, where I tested positive for cocaine," Evans told the media in a brief London press conference. "It is really important that you know this was taken out of competition and the context completely unrelated to tennis. I made a mistake and I must face up to it."
The International Tennis Federation announced Evans was formally charged with an anti-doping rule violation on June 16th had accepted his positive test. Evans will be provisionally suspended from June 26th pending determination of his case.
The 2017 WADA Prohibited List was incorporated into the TADP from 1 January.