WADA immune to credit crunch, says president

WORLD Anti-Doping Agency president John Fahey insists the worldwide fight to tackle doping in sport is not feeling the effects of the global economic recession.

Speaking ahead of a WADA executive committee meeting this weekend in Montreal, Fahey revealed the agency had received 99.3 per cent of its subscription payments from member governments.

The International Olympic Committee matches the contribution from member governments and other stake holders and Fahey added he was full expecting that to reach 100 per cent before the final budget is announced in December.

"We've received nearly all of our budget for 2010 and it looks like for the second year in a row we will reach 100 per cent of the budget.

"I believe this is a clear sign to conduct the fight against doping despite this being a difficult year for all the governments across the world.

"It shows that this is a priority issue for the governments of the world despite the difficult recent times."

Fahey remained tight-lipped on recent high-profile doping cases, including the gender issue of South African 800m runner Caster Semenya and five Jamaican sprinters who admitted to using a banned substance.

But he did express concern over the growing number of positive tests involving Russian athletes.

In August, cross-country skiing Olympic gold medallists Julia Chepalova and Yevgeny Dementiev retired after testing positive for blood booster EPO (erythropoietin) in Italy in January.

 Chepalova won gold medals at the Winter Games in 1998, 2002 and 2006 while Dementiev, 26, won the gold medal in the 30km men's pursuit at the 2006 Turin Olympics.

Another Russian skier, Nina Rysina, tested positive for EPO while competing in France in January.

And in July the International Biathlon Union suspended three Russian athletes for two years for doping violations.

"I am conscious of the number of doping cases in the past several months that involved Russian athletes, I should add it is a little troubling to see that occur," added Fahey.

"No country is immune. We hope that Russia can become more effective with time (in stamping out the problem)."

The executive committee will consider next year's list of prohibitive substances which is revised annually and continue to work on and athlete's passport.