The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has published the final designed version of the Athletes’ Anti-Doping Rights Act (Act) on June 18th, which WADA’s Athlete Committee developed over two and half years in consultation with thousands of athletes and stakeholders worldwide.

The purpose of the Act, which is based on the 2021 World Anti-Doping Code (Code) and its related International Standards that take effect on 1 January 2021, is to ensure that the rights of all athletes worldwide to participate in doping-free sport are clearly set out, accessible, and universally applicable. The document was approved by WADA’s Executive Committee on 7 November 2019 during the World Conference on Doping in Sport in Katowice, Poland.

Developed by athletes, for athletes, the Act provides an outline of rights provided by the 2021 Code and International Standards in terms of equality of opportunity, fair testing programmes, medical treatment, justice, accountability, education, data protection and more. It also makes recommendations around athletes’ rights to be part of a system that is free from corruption, that they are appropriately represented in terms of governance and decision-making, and that they have a right to legal aid.

This Act is made up of two parts. Part one sets out rights that are found in the Code and International Standards. Part two sets out recommended athlete rights, which are not found in the Code or Standards but are rights that athletes recommend that anti-doping organizations adopt for best practice.

Source & more information: WADA