The Hindu : Sport : ICC changes anti-doping rules

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Thursday, Jul 05, 2007
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ICC changes anti-doping rules

Special Correspondent

Gives itself more powers to intervene

Shoaib Akhtar, Mohd. Asif case “closed”
Amendments ratified by Board on June 27 and 28

NEW DELHI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has amended its anti-doping rules to give itself more powers to intervene in case a member country is unable to fulfil its obligations in the anti-doping campaign.

In a press release issued on Tuesday, the ICC stated that the matter involving the two Pakistan cricketers, Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif, was “closed” following the dismissal of an appeal by the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

“Following this case, we have amended the ICC anti-doping code to ensure we have more powers to intervene if we feel a member is not doing all it can in the fight against drugs in cricket,” said the Acting Chief Executive of the ICC, Faisal Hasnain, in a statement.

Right of appeal

“In line with the amendments, the ICC now has a right of appeal if a member that is not WADA-compliant makes a decision which is inconsistent with the WADA Code.

“Furthermore, while such an appeal is pending, the relevant players can be target tested by the ICC up to 60 days before one of our events.”

On being requested to provide the relevant amendments, an ICC spokesman clarified on Wednesday that the amended code was “not available yet”. He said the amendments, first discussed at the Chief Executive’s committee meeting, were ratified by the Executive Board meeting at Lord’s on June 27 and 28.

That means the ICC carried out the amendments even before the CAS decision, taken on June 28, was made public on July 2. Without having the details of the amendments it is difficult to say whether the ICC would be able to tackle a similar case like the PCB’s exoneration of Akhtar and Asif after positive dope tests for steroids.

The ICC anti-doping code, as it existed at the time of the PCB charade, did contain a “right of appeal” for ICC and WADA. But then the whole code was meant only for ‘ICC events’ and it was silent about either ICC or its members conducting out-of-competition tests.

The only out-of-competition tests mentioned in the ICC code were the ones to be carried out just prior to or after an ICC event. Target-testing was considered prior to the last World Cup in West Indies but nothing was heard after that.

Binding code

Full compliance of the WADA Code will mean the ICC having a code that is binding on all its members and players, out-of-competition testing and the right of appeal for ICC and WADA in CAS in all doping cases involving at least international cricketers.

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