WADA Hack "Unhelpful" for Russia

(ATR) The head of the World Anti Doping Agency tells Around the Rings that a cyber attack on the WADA database is more bad news for Russia as it tries to restore its standing in world sport.

"This activity is very unhelpful and makes it ever more difficult to deliver any assurance that there is a real will in Russia to accept the previous breaches in their anti-doping systems and to convince the world that they are serious about reform," WADA president Craig Reedie says in an email to ATR.

WADA confirms that Russian hackers known as Fancy Bear invaded the ADAMS database recently and extracted documents purporting to be Theraputic Use Exemptions and Adverse Analytical Findings for four U.S. Olympians at the Rio Olympics.

The previously confidential details for gymnast Simone Biles, basketball player Elena Delle Donne, and tennis greats Serena Williams and Venus Williams were published Monday at the website fancybears.net.

"After detailed studying of the hacked WADA databases we figured out that dozens of American athletes had tested positive," says a statement on the Fancy Bears site.

"The Rio Olympic medalists regularly used illicit strong drugs justified by certificates of approval for therapeutic use. In other words they just got their licenses for doping. This is other evidence that WADA and IOC's Medical and Scientific Department are corrupt and deceitful," say the hackers.

Among the medications detailed in the hack are hydrocortisone for Donne, prednisolone for Serena and Venus Williams, triamcinolone for Venus and methylfenidate for Simone Biles.

The hack is the second in a month against WADA. The earlier attack accessed the account of Russia track athlete Yulia Stepanova, the whistleblower who helped expose what is said to have been an extensive state-run program to hide doping violations by Russian athletes. The revelations led to the banishment of Russia track and field athletes at the Rio Olympics and the entire Russian team for the Paralympics now underway.

Travis Tygart, CEO of the U.S. Anti DopingAgency issued a statement deploring the latest WADA hack.

"It’s unthinkable that in the Olympic movement, hackers would illegally obtain confidential medical information in an attempt to smear athletes to make it look as if they have done something wrong. The athletes haven’t.

"In fact, in each of the situations, the athlete has done everything right in adhering to the global rules for obtaining permission to use a needed medication. The respective International Federations, through the proper process, granted the permission and it was recognized by the IOC and USADA. The cyber-bullying of innocent athletes being engaged in by these hackers is cowardly and despicable," says Tygart.

Fancy Bears says it will be releasing more documents gathered through its trolling of the WADA database.

"WADA deeply regrets this situation and is very conscious of the threat that it represents to athletes whose confidential information has been divulged through this criminal act," WADA director general Olivier Niggli says in a statement. An investigation is being conducted into the breach.

This development in the Russian doping saga comes as the IOC expels four more Russians the Olympics, three for positive tests from the 2008 Games, one from 2012. The new positive tests are the result of sample retests from those Olympics using the more advanced testing procedures now available. Among the four named today is Maria Abakumova, 2008 javelin silver medalist.

In Russia, Vitaly Smirnov, retired IOC member and president emeritus of the Russian Olympic Committee has launched the work of an independent commission meant to repair the reputation of the Russian anti-doping program.

"The main aim of the commission is elaboration and introduction of a national plan to counter doping in our country, as well as proposing to the international sporting community a single and transparent anti-doping system," Smirnov said last week.

Reedie says the commission is a positive step but admits "yet more complicated work to do" about the road to reform in Russia.

Written by Ed Hula.

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