Effective June 14th, 2017, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has partially suspended the UCLA Olympic Analytical Laboratory (UCLA Laboratory) for a period of 3 months following “WADA’s quality assessment procedures that identified non-conformities with best practice.”
While suspended the laboratory may continue with its routine anti-doping procedures, but the laboratory must obtain a second opinion from another WADA-accredited laboratory before reporting any Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) for the following substances: “glucocorticoids ‘prednisolone’ and ‘prednisone’; and, the anabolic steroids ‘boldenone’ and ‘boldione.'”
In order to regain its accreditation, WADA will visit the laboratory within a time-frame that “reasonably allows the laboratory to finalise implementation of all remedial actions.”
Though the laboratory is not actually located on UCLA’s campus, LA2024 has stated that it would use the university dorms as the Athletes’ Village during the 2024 (or 2028) Olympic and Paralympic Games. While LA2024 is yet to comment on the suspension of the UCLA lab, Scott Blackmun, CEO of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) commented “We’re completely in favor of strict compliance with the code,” and “To the extent that any laboratory is noncompliant, whether it’s in the U.S. or otherwise, we support the direction that WADA has taken,” Blackmun told the LA Times.
While a suspension is not ideal, it is not the final “nail in the coffin” of the LA2024 Olympic bid either, which moves forward, even after LA2024 Chairman Casey Wasserman seemingly conceded the 2024 Games to bid rival Paris.
The UCLA Laboratory may appeal the Decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within 21 days of receipt of notice (June 16th, 2017) by WADA, meaning the lab has 16 days remaining to make an appeal to CAS.
Hoping this is just lazy compliance and not another RUSADA situation.
It sounds like they are concerned about false positives, so I don’t think it is in any way analogous to the Rusada situation.
Sure.