New measures on doping

Press, 15 May 1987, Page 20

New measures on doping

NZPA-Reuter Florence Sports administrators and scientists from 19 countries ended an international symposium on doping in sport this week with a call for uniform controls and punishments for offenders in all countries and in all disciplines.

At a news conference at the end of the three-day meeting, the participants also called for better pre-

ventive measures and an education campaign to warn athletes in all sports against the dangers of taking drugs to improve performance. Primo Nebiolo, the president of the International Amateur Athletic Federation (1.A.A.F.), said young athletes should be warned of the futility and danger of doping.

He said sanctions were an important deterrent,

noting the I.A.A.F. council had agreed to recommend new punishments for doping offenders to the federation’s 1 congress in Rome in August. The Recommendations include disqualification ranging J from three months to life for offences involving ephedrine, a drug commonly used by asthma sufferers which expands the trachea-and lungs.

For other drugs the penalties would be two years for a first offence and a life ban for the second. Under present rules a doped athlete is banned for life with the chance of a reduction to 18 months on appeal. “These are severe punishments because a twoyear suspension for an athlete is a long time,” Mr Nebiolo said.