Bodybuilding: SLADA proposes the sport omitted from National Sports Festival

Sri Lanka Anti Doping Agency (SLADA) Chairman Professor Arjuna Silva proposed to withdraw bodybuilding from the National Sports Festival (NSF) which is conducted by the Sports Ministry. 

He emphasised that national bodybuilders always avoid the doping test conducted by the SLADA and as a result there is reasonable doubt about their performances. 

Professor Silva further noted that it is mandatory for all bodybuilders to participate in the doping test as their international assignments are sponsored by the Sports Ministry. 

When the SLADA brought this message to the notice of the Sri Lanka Bodybuilding Federation (SLBFA) they had emphasised that their participation at international level is restricted only for events conducted without any doping tests. 

In fact, these tournaments are conducted by a rival group of the World Body. 

As bodybuilding is not an Olympic sport, Professor Silva has recommended to the Sports Ministry that the sport to be removed from next years National Sports Festival. 

Professor Silva said that a total of 1,200 athletes were tested by the SLADA this year and each test has cost the SLADA a sum of over US $200. 

Doping in Sports is among one of the most burning issues in the modern concept of sports since the reporting number of cases for anti-doping rule violations is extremely high and gradually increasing day by day. 

As far as Sri Lanka is concerned, no deviation or exception to this common trend can be identified, because there are more than fifty instances have already been reported since 1999 for involving our national and international level athletes in cases related to performance enhancing drugs and steroids. 

The most common offense occurred in respect of violating anti-doping rules is the use of performance enhancing drugs and steroids by athletes which are legally banned by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in their Annual Prohibited List. 

Therefore, a more comprehensive and strategically instrumental testing and prevention process is immediately required to address this problematic situation. 

Sri Lanka Anti-Doping Agency (SLADA) has been established by the Parliamentary Act No. 33 of 2013 Convention against Doping in Sports Act and is currently existing as an affiliated body to the Ministry of Sports. 

Being the sole local agent of WADA which governs, controls and regulates the all aspects of doping related issues in global sports, SLADA is fully committed, devoted and dedicated to promote and always uphold the genuine concept of Clean Sports in Sri Lanka. 

As far as the remarkable progress and excellent performance already achieved by SLADA are concerned, it is glad to recall that Sri Lanka is well ahead in the South Asia compared to other regional states. 

The major statutory functions of SLADA involves the Dope Testing in Sports and the education of athletes on the subject of Prohibited Substances and Prohibited Methods. 

In carrying out its major function of testing process, one of the main issues entangled by SLADA is the lack of qualified Doping Control Officers (DCO) to efficiently initiate such testing procedure. 

So, Sri Lanka Anti-Doping Agency (SLADA) has made all arrangements to organise a programme for training 20 DCO to be deployed island-wide. 

This DCO Training Programme will be held from November 16 to 18 at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute, Colombo 7. 

Another workshop has been organised on Results Management relating to Anti-Doping in Sports as to go in coincide with the above SARADO Board Meeting and the DCO Training. 

It will help to upgrade the states of the judicial procedure of SLADA up to the international standards in providing a systematic training evolved with modern trends in this filed to the members of the Disciplinary and Appeal Panels of SLADA. 

This Workshop on Results Management will be held on November 19 and 20 at the Hotel Mirage, Colombo 6. 

Both these DCO Training Programmes and Workshop on Results Management will be facilitated by the qualified Expatriate Resource Personnel attached to the UK Anti-Doping in the United Kingdom.