WADA study shows no meaningful link between TUE’s and winning an Olympic medal

To optimise for archiving, the original image and related documents associated with this article have been removed.

According to a study undertaken by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) there is no meaningful link between an athlete having a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) and winning an Olympic medal.

The study was undertaken by WADA Medical Director, Dr Alan Vernec, and WADA TUE Manager, David Healy, who studies the five summer and winter Olympics that occurred during the period of 2010 to 2018. The study aimed to determine whether or not those with TUE’s won more medals than those athletes without a TUE.

A TUE allows athletes to use an otherwise prohibited substance in order to treat a legitimate medical condition and must be granted by an anti-doping organisation before use in competition. Dr Vernec said that “The data showed that the number of athletes competing with valid TUEs at the selected Games was less than 1%. Furthermore, the analysis suggests that there is no meaningful association between competing with a TUE and the likelihood of winning a medal.”

Many factors were taken into account during the study such as countries having greater resources meaning that athletes would have better access to superior training facilities, medical and coaching. Overall, the study found that 2062 medals were awarded throughout the five studied Olympics with only 21 of these medals being won by athletes with a TUE.

You can access the full study here.

You may also like

View All

BBC and ITV to broadcast 2027 Women’s World Cup

The BBC and ITV have acquired broadcasting rights to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup set to take place in Brazil, meaning that the event will remain free-to-air in the UK which is vital to ensure continued growth for the women’s game

Read More

All five athletes found not guilty in Hockey Canada sexual assault case

Judge Justice Maria Carroccia has independently ruled that all five male ice hockey players are not guilty of sexual assault in Hockey Canada’s notorious case

Read More

Transgender cyclist wins discrimination case against UCI

A transgender cyclist has won a discrimination case against the Union Cycliste Internationale

Read More