Releases
Speak Up! to help raise the game for clean sport
Find out more about how WADA works with confidential sources with our webinar on 5 October and new video series
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) invites stakeholders to register for its webinar titled Speak Up! to help raise the game for clean sport, to be held on 5 October at 08:00 EDT. The webinar will be hosted by Gunter Younger, Director of WADA’s Intelligence & Investigations (I&I) department; Damien Larin, Head of WADA I&I’s Confidential Information Unit; and Tony Cunningham, WADA’s Senior Manager, Education (Policy & Research).
The webinar is designed to inform athletes, their entourage and all interested stakeholders, on how we work with confidential sources. The discussion will cover our Speak Up! platform, what educational resources are available on the topic, and what support WADA I&I provides should athletes and others choose to come forward with information concerning doping misconduct in sport.
Videos
We have also created four videos further explaining how we work with confidential sources, and specifically how we ensure that information provided is used confidentially, responsibly and with maximum impact.
1. Speak Up! to help raise the game for clean sport
In this video, Tony Cunningham, Senior Manager, Education (Policy & Research), speaks about Social Science Research that has provided insight into the burden that athletes feel when they become aware of doping behaviors, the experience of confidential sources, and the lack of awareness about what options are available to athletes and others to Speak Up! Tony is joined by Gunter Younger, Director of WADA I&I, and Damien Larin, Head of our Confidential Information Unit, who provide a brief overview of how we work with sources while protecting their confidentiality.
2. The burden of knowing
Knowing about doping behavior can be a heavy burden to carry for athletes or their entourage, with many unknowns if they choose to come forward and report a peer, competitor, or organization. In this video, Gunter Younger, Director of WADA I&I, explains how the protection of confidential sources is the primary focus of our Confidential Information Unit. After five years and over 1,000 reports, our confidential informant identities have always been protected. Our sources do not regret working with us and are key to protecting clean sport.
3. How we work with confidential sources: A seven-step process
It can be difficult for confidential sources to decide to come forward with information on doping misconduct. It takes courage. In this video Damien Larin, Head of our Confidential Information Unit, explains our seven-step process for working with confidential sources, which should give potential sources greater confidence to come forward and Speak Up!
4. Working together
In this video, Gunter Younger, Director of WADA I&I, and Damien Larin, Head of our Confidential Information Unit, emphasize how important confidential sources are to investigations. All our investigations to date have benefited from information provided by brave sources. It is only by working together that we can continue to raise the game for clean sport.
To find out more about how WADA works with confidential sources:
- Visit our Speak Up! platform
- Log into ADEL, our Education and Training platform
- Read our Confidential Source Policy
- Read our Investigation Policy
- Read our October 2020 Spotlight article on the role of whistleblowers in anti-doping
