The European Athletics Championships of 1966 marked the first major international sporting event where human athletes were officially drug tested, driven by concerns over the increasing use of performance-enhancing drugs. The development of drug testing in sports was significantly advanced by German biochemist Manfred Donike in the 1960s and ’70s, leading to the establishment of modern laboratories and testing protocols. However, international laboratories faced challenges in keeping up with the evolving methods of drug abuse by athletes, leading to the need for harmonization of lab results in human sports.
Dr. Larry Bowers played a key role in developing the World Anti-Doping Agency’s International Standard for Laboratories, which aimed to bring performance parity to all international drug testing labs in human sports. The implementation of proficiency testing programs, including single-blind and double-blind tests, helped to improve the accuracy and reliability of drug testing in sports. However, laboratories faced challenges in adapting to the new standards, leading to accreditation suspensions and the need for continuous improvement in testing protocols.
The BALCO scandal, involving the distribution of designer anabolic steroids to top athletes, highlighted the challenges faced by regulators in detecting new and unusual drugs used by athletes. The scandal led to the development of new testing methods that could be replicated across all labs, improving the detection of performance-enhancing substances. The experience of the BALCO scandal provided valuable lessons for regulators in both human and equine sports, emphasizing the importance of collaboration and information sharing across different sports disciplines.
