WADA puts Pakistan on watch list for non-compliance

ISLAMABAD: The mishandling of the national anti-doping organization working directly under umbrella of the Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) has put the country on the verge of an international ban.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has put Pakistan on the watch list for failing to meet the required standards.

Pakistan has recently produced a world-beater in Arshad Nadeem, who made the country proud by winning the gold medal at the Paris Olympics. All those athletes preparing to hoist the national flag internationally could face an uncertain future if the National Anti-Doping Agency fails to live up to the required standards inked by WADA.

Ever since Dr Waqar Ahmed, former head of South Asia Anti-Doping parted ways with the National Anti-Doping Agency, Pakistan has been facing setbacks one after another at the international level. Recently, the Regional Anti-Doping Organization of Central Asia (RADOCA) has terminated Pakistan’s membership and now WADA has come harsh on non-compliance of the Pakistan Anti-Doping Agency.

Pakistan has been given four-month time starting from October 4 to introduce corrective measures failing which further action will be taken.

The National Anti-doping Agency in Pakistan works directly under the PSB with majority of the officials having absolutely no deep-rooted knowledge of its work Pakistan has received serious warning from WADA to introduce remedial measures or face the ban. Apart from Pakistan, six other nations Namibia, Panama, Samoa, Senegal, Uganda and Uruguay also received the same warning.

WADA in a handout says that the Executive Council followed the recommendation from the Agency’s independent?Compliance Review Committee?(CRC) to allege one International Federation (IF) as non-compliant with the code and added seven National Anti-Doping Organizations (NADOs) to the compliance ‘watch list’.

The IF of Basque Pelota (FIPV) has been alleged as non-compliant with the code for failing to address non-conformities that were identified through the Code Compliance Questionnaire (CCQ) framework in 2023 in the area of testing. Under Article 9.3.1 of the International Standard for Code Compliance by Signatories (ISCCS), the signatories have 21 days following the date of receipt of the formal notice of non-compliance to dispute WADA’s allegation of non-compliance, and/or the proposed consequences and/or the reinstatement conditions proposed by the ExCo.

For the FIPV, therefore, it should be noted that the decision (including the consequences) will enter into force on October 4, unless the decision is challenged by that date.

The ExCo also followed the recommendations of the CRC to put seven nations’ NADOs including Pakistan on the ‘watch-list’, giving them an additional four months to correct outstanding non-conformities.

Pakistan Sports Board Acting Director General Shahid Islam did not respond when contacted on this gross negligence. PSB Director General Yasir Peerzada was on tour to Korea.