Projet de mise en place d’une stratégie de prévention du dopage en milieu scolaire de Côte d’Ivoire

Summary

The purpose of this study is to implement a doping prevention strategy based on a study of students' knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding doping. Expected findings will advance general knowledge about the discipline, with regard to doping in an educational environment on the Ivory Coast. On the Ivory Coast, doping research usually involves athletes from professional clubs (in particular, soccer), and do not take into account the educational environment.

Methodology

This is action research based on a CAP diagnostic study of students' knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding doping products in which the findings will be used to develop communication messages. On one hand, these messages will be used for a series of public conferences in schools, and on the other hand, for awareness of the proximity led by local committees (composed of students from the educational institutions involved) put in place for the project, from the point of view of behavioural change. In addition, a psychosocial case management of cases of dependency on doping products, identified during the study, will be conducted by the team's social assistants in order to help the students involved abandon these practices. Follow up on these activities will be done by the project team and then a performance assessment will be done at the end.

Results

• 20.6% of the students surveyed say they know of student athletes who use products to improve their performance in sport. In addition, 5.3% of the student athletes surveyed say they have already used products to improve their performance. These figures suggest the need to reduce the prevalence of doping among school athletes in Ivory Coast.
• The desire to overcome fear and stress, as well as the need for endurance/vigor are the main reasons for the use of doping products by the student athletes surveyed. This research suggests that student athletes must be educated on recommended methods to overcome fear and stress during competitions and to achieve physical endurance.
• 10% of student athletes say they use multivitamins before competitions or during training, and 24.3% use them after. It is recommended to raise awareness among student athletes about the non-use of multivitamin products before and during competitions and training.
• Alcoholic beverages are one of the substances most used by student athletes as a product to increase performance in the practice of sport. Drug use is also mentioned. It is recommended to raise awareness among student athletes about not taking alcoholic beverages before and during competitions and training.
• 66.1% of the students surveyed have already heard of doping. That is 33.9% who have not heard of it outside the survey. We strongly recommend to inform students about doping, its definition according to WADA and WHO.
• TV (70.6%) is by far the channel through which students have heard about doping. Access to this information through schools represents 15.1%. This result suggest the need to strengthen the capacity of schools to disseminate information on doping, including through the training of school health club members on doping.
• 23.9% of students who have heard of doping are not able to name products that are prohibited in sport, and some of those who say they know these products sometimes confuse them with non‐harmful products. We recommend to inform student athletes about the list of products prohibited in the practice of sport.
• 92.2% of students admit that there are negative consequences related to doping. However, students should be further educated about concrete consequences of doping.

Final report and recommendations are only available in French.