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WADA Publishes 2021 Testing Figures Report

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Report Highlights:

  • A 61.2% increase in the number of samples (both urine and non-ABP blood samples) analyzed and reported into ADAMS: 149,758 in 2020 to 241,430 in 2021. It should be noted that the COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted the number of samples collected in 2020.
  • An increase in the total number of samples analyzed and reported by nearly all WADA-accredited laboratories and WADA-approved laboratories into ADAMS in 2021 compared to 2020.
  • An increase in the total number and percentage of non-ABP blood samples analyzed: 7.3% (10,940 of 149,758 samples) in 2020 to 9.3% (22,398 Blood + DBS samples out of 241,430).
  • An increase of 36% in the number of ABP blood samples analyzed: 22,666 in 2020 to 30,821 in 2021.
  • A decrease in the total percentage of AAFs: 0.67% in 2020 (1,009 AAFs from 149,758 samples) to 0.65% (1,560 AAFs from 241,430 samples).
  • An increase in the total number of AAFs for growth hormone (GH): 1 in 2020 to 7 in 2021, including the first reported AAF for a GH biomarker.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) today publishes its 2021 Testing Figures Report (2021 Report), which summarizes the results of all the samples WADA-accredited laboratories analyzed and reported in WADA’s Anti-Doping Administration and Management System (ADAMS) in 2021.

This is the first set of global testing figures under the 2021 World Anti-Doping Code (Code) that came into effect in January 2021. The 2021 Report – which includes an Executive Summary and sub-reports by Laboratory, Sport, Testing Authority and Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) Blood Analysis – includes in- and out-of-competition urine samples, blood and ABP blood data, and the resulting Adverse Analytical Findings (AAFs) and Atypical Findings (ATFs).

WADA Director General Olivier Niggli said: “We are pleased to publish the 2021 edition of WADA’s Annual Testing Figures Report, which is the most comprehensive overview of all doping control samples analyzed and reported by WADA-accredited and WADA-approved laboratories around the world. The quick return to normal testing levels around the world during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in increases in samples collected, analyzed and reported in 2021 compared to 2020. The Agency would like to commend the Anti-Doping Organizations and accredited laboratories around the world for their quick and effective efforts in rising to the challenges presented by COVID-19.

“The Testing Figures Report is an important tool for information-sharing between Anti-Doping Organizations as well as a foundational piece on which to build and adjust their anti-doping programs. It provides the anti-doping community with valuable data and information allowing for strategy evaluation and identifying potential patterns, best practices and areas of improvement.”

To help with the interpretation of the 2021 Report, we provide a comprehensive Question and Answer document. Of particular importance, please note that:

  • One single result does not necessarily correspond to one athlete. Results may correspond to multiple findings regarding the same athlete or measurements performed on the same athlete, such as in the case of longitudinal studies of testosterone.
  • The number of AAFs in the Report may not correspond to the number of Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) reported by Anti-Doping Organizations (ADOs). This is because all results are subject to a results management process conducted by ADOs, which includes matching results with Therapeutic Use Exemptions (TUEs), and longitudinal studies which can result in no case to answer or no sanction.
  • As usual, this Report does not illustrate statistics on ADRVs, which are reported via a separate ADRV Report. The 2020 ADRV Report will be finalized and published shortly. The ADRV Report reveals analytical and non-analytical cases and the outcomes of results management, which is a process that can take a long time given that it may include investigations, appeals and other due processes.