China Anti-Doping Agency calls for independent investigation into USADA

BEIJING, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- China Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA) has called for an independent investigation into the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) for its serious breach of the World Anti-Doping Code (the Code) and cover-up of anti-doping rule violations.

The statement was made after the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) revealed that since 2011, there have been at least three cases where athletes who had committed serious anti-doping rule violations were exonerated by USADA and allowed to continue to compete without sanctions for years, while they acted as the so-called undercover agents for USADA. WADA wasn't informed of the practice until 2021.

CHINADA pointed out that such practice constitutes a serious violation of the Code and USADA's own rules, causes severe damage to the rights and interests of clean athletes and to the fair play principle in sport, and shows a profound lack of transparency in USADA's anti-doping work.

While the CEO of USADA claimed that the practice was "an effective way to get at these bigger, systemic problems", CHINADA asserted that it was, in fact, a cover-up of anti-doping rule violations.

CHINADA further added that such remarks reflected "the arrogance of the USADA CEO and his contempt for international rules."

"Moreover, it has further added evidence to the larger-scale, organized, and systemic doping problem in U.S. sports," the statement read, noting that the U.S.'s tolerance of its own long history of problems stands in stark contrast to its attempt to exercise jurisdiction over other countries.

It "clearly exposed to the international community its trick of a thief crying 'stop the thief' and the double standards behind its logic," according to CHINADA.

CHINADA called for an independent investigation into USADA, demanding that details of relevant cases be disclosed and that USADA respond to the concerns about its own problems raised by the media and the general public.

It also urged the U.S. Congress and the USADA Board of Directors to face up to the grave problem of doping within the U.S. itself and the serious governance flaws within USADA.

While calling for tighter supervision and regulation of USADA, and stronger anti-doping measures within the U.S., CHINADA urged the U.S. to stop "despicable attempts of 'long-arm jurisdiction' and gross meddling in the work of anti-doping organizations in other countries."

CHINADA also called on USADA to truly implement the principle of transparency "to which it has repeatedly claimed to adhere in its statements."