THE CARIBBEAN REGIONAL Anti-Doping Organisation (Caribbean RADO) will be providing support to the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee, acting as the National Anti-Doping Organisation (NADO) in T&T for the August 4-11 Commonwealth Youth Games.
Caribbean RADO chairman Patrick Werleman made the announcement in front of 18 member-country delegates at the organisation’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) opening ceremony that was hosted over the weekend at the Regency Hyatt in Port of Spain.
The Barbados-based Caribbean RADO acts as the secretariat for anti-doping issues for 18 members countries in the Caribbean.
Minister of Sport and Community Development Shamfa Cudjoe and the Minister in the Ministry of Legal Affairs, senator Renuka Sagramsingh-Sooklal, as well as representatives of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) were also present at the AGM.
The local NADO is chaired by Dr Terry Ali, a TTOC vice-president, with Rheeza Grant being the TTO member country representative to the Caribbean RADO and the person responsible for the administrative responsibilities of the local arm.
At the Hyatt, Werleman said the NADOs member country representatives need all the help they can get to comply with strict World Anti-Doping Code requirements, while these country’s governments also have responsibilities and obligations through the UNESCO International Convention against doping in sport, “to take appropriate and necessary measures to promote the fight against doping in sports.”
Werleman said the benefit of this AGM was also to meet stakeholders and exchange information as the Caribbean RADO endeavours to assist and support the members and their anti-doping programmes.
“We are committed to working together to create a level playing field for all athletes and to protect the health of athletes as well as preserve the integrity of sport,” he said, “...and to consistently educate and inform NOCs, Governments and CGAs (Commonwealth Games Associations) and sporting communities about the dangers and consequences of doping in sports and each group’s responsibility in this fight.
“The fundamental tools to facilitate this change are awareness and education. The education and distribution of information needs to be done on a consistent basis and from a very young age. That’s why the Caribbean RADO is happy to be involved with the Trinbago 23 CYG. We will collaborate with the TTCGA to support their doping control programme,”
Dr Sasha Sutherland, Caribbean RADO executive director, applauded the local NADO, whose duty and responsibility it is to conduct doping control programmes in T&T, for their efforts to date and their willingness to welcome the support of the Caribbean NADO for the CYG.
“It demonstrates their integrity and transparency in the fight against doping and we are happy to provide this support to them.
To that end and for the benefit of the other delegates, the Caribbean RADO’s proceedings last weekend involved a Member Country Representative Capacity Building Workshop which focused on key areas, such as the Anti-Doping Administrative Management System (ADAMS),
The weekend also included discussions about compliance with the 2021 code; the need for operational independence; discussions surrounding risk assessment and test distribution planning and a review of the WADA Code Compliance Questionnaire which requires all member countries to analyse and evaluate their anti-doping programmes.
The discussions also centred on the need for anti-doping legislative reform ahead of the 2025 World Conference on Doping in Sport in Bhutan.
