Drug testing on club runners?

Hi there, 

 

Just wondering can random drug tests be taken on club runners (NI AND UK) and if so what things are banned? 

Thanks!

 

Comments

  • Curly45Curly45 ✭✭✭

    I am not sure but the only antidoping stuff on the UKA website is in the World Class Performances section...I would imagine that no testing goes on at club level as it just isnt worth it.

    http://www.uka.org.uk/world-class/anti-doping/general-information/

  • Here in Germany, in the triathlon world random drug tests are carried out on age group race finishers as well as pro triathletes. There is a long list of banned substances on the internet which is updated at least once every year, I would imagine there's a similar list in GB.

  • Where can you get a list of all the banned drugs? And which ones are the most effective?

  • WilkieWilkie ✭✭✭

    Try this - doesn't say which are the most effective though!

  • Occassionally you can get drug tested in ordinary races. You can't be out of competition tested unless you are on the My Adams whereabouts programme, which means you are pretty good, but they do random drug testing at competitions like English Schools and BUCS, and some road races (usually ones where is substantial prize money involved). You could theoretically be tested at any race though. You can check any medications or supplements that you are taking here: http://www.globaldro.com/

  • Curly45Curly45 ✭✭✭

    Interesting Dancing - can they test other races or only those run under UKA rules (I'm thinking of ARC races here)?

    Not that it matters for me as I am too slow to be of interest, but I am just wondering how that works as I've never seen the capacity to be tested in any race rules and regs...perhaps its just for track races or is in the general UKA rules somewhere (like the no garmin rule that no-one enforces!).

  • Not quite what the OP was after, but two years ago a proportion of randomly selected runners (you were notified pre-race) were INVITED to provide a urine sample after the race, for drugs analysis. I got a nice cubicle to pee in, after an extra bottle of water and a 15 minute wait. For our contribution, we got a T-Shirt which was disappointingly coloured something like what we had given to them.

    I think the results were anonymised but were used to do academic research on drug-taking by sporting types, all the way from performance enhancing to recreational stuff as an exercise in baselining drug-taking trends in society. Anyway, i was really pleased with my finishing time of 1:59:32 for that marathon and will think about training a bit harder the next time i do one.

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  • ???

    I think Nick Windsor may test positive for the recreational variety if he believes Tricky ran that time!

  • Dear Nick, even though this was the Paris marathon, do you think I will still be eligible for lottery funding which might then be used to realise an overflow of my prodigious fountain of youthful talent? You seem to know a lot about coaching and mentoring people, so I thought you'd be the best person to ask. BTW what is the best masking agent for Clenbuterol?
  • Curly45 wrote (see)

    Interesting Dancing - can they test other races or only those run under UKA rules (I'm thinking of ARC races here)?

    Not that it matters for me as I am too slow to be of interest, but I am just wondering how that works as I've never seen the capacity to be tested in any race rules and regs...perhaps its just for track races or is in the general UKA rules somewhere (like the no garmin rule that no-one enforces!).

    It is unclear, but in theory anyone from beginner to elite can be tested and is strictly liable under the doping rules - http://www.ukad.org.uk/

  • As I understand it, any competition may test anyone... ...if and only if there is a note in the rules permitting them to do so. Sometimes the race may be run under a particular organisation's rules, in which case one would have to check the relevant organisation's document as well as the specific rule list for that race.

     

    Sometimes only specific groups of people are mentioned (perhaps age group runners, affiliated club competitors or people finishing in the top x positions in their class), in which case anyone not in those categories cannot be tested in that particular race. If there's a note about drug testing in the rules and no categories are specified, anyone (including non-finishers and non-starters who are registered and present on-site within 12 hours of the competition's start time) can be tested.

     

    If the right exists in the rules to test, the competition organisers are not obliged to exercise it with regards to any given individual. However, if they do exercise it, they are usually obliged to see the process through to completion - that is to say, they have to test whoever they have decided to test according to the rules they laid out, they must respect the results of that test and (if needed) they must co-operate with any appeals procedures.

     

    As for what things are banned, the strictest list is WADA's ( http://www.wada-ama.org/en/World-Anti-Doping-Program/Sports-and-Anti-Doping-Organizations/International-Standards/Prohibited-List/ ). Sporting organisations tend to use WADA's list to define what is banned, and if they vary, they don't ban things WADA doesn't. I don't know if a club-level race would test for everything on the list even if it was inclined to test. As a general rule, anything on the list, if caught, would result in a penalty of some description unless you have previously arranged an official exemption (WADA calls these Therapeutic Use Exemptions). Be warned - the WADA list is updated at least once a year, so it's worth checking any ingredients list for items you plan to take to the race, and be careful about supplements. Depending on where the supplement is from, it is possible it could be contaminated with something not on the ingredient list, so look for closely-regulated ones if you want to use any (as these are more likely to match the ingredient list). 

     

    Note also that a few drugs, like caffeine, are checked but cannot result in a penalty at any level. These are called monitored drugs and the aggregated results are used to check how athletes are using them.

     

    Effectiveness is not given in the WADA list as there are many variables involved in drug effectiveness and WADA has only limited interest in them. For the most part, if you have a banned drug in you, the drug testers won't care whether it helps, hinders or is just along for the ride.  

     

    Research testing is a separate matter, but if it is for research, there has to be an option to opt-out. A drug test for competition purposes cannot have an opt-out option. If you test positive for a banned substance in a research test, it may have negative implications upon your race result, depending on the precise balance between confidentiality and inter-organisational co-operation.  

     

    I've been drug-tested once before (for a swimming competition) and there's nothing to be scared about if you know what you've put in your body and have kept away from the banned stuff. So I'd suggest the best approach is to try to compete cleanly, check your labels, skip anything from suspicious sources and avoid worrying about the testing unless and until you a

  • Tricky Dicky, I would advise against masking clenbuterol. If you need it for medical purposes, it's better to get a therapeutic use exemption (TUE) from WADA. Then you don't need to worry about masking and your level of it will be ignored in testing unless you have an amount clearly in excess of any therapeutic need. If you don't have a medical use for clenbuterol, don't use it at all.

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