European I&I Capability and Capacity Building Project

Fostering better collaboration in Intelligence & Investigation for clean sport in Europe

Introduction

In June 2022, WADA was awarded a grant by the European Commission, to increase anti-doping intelligence and investigation capacity in Europe, reduce the prevalence of doping in sport and maximize the health benefits for European youth practicing clean sport.

The Intelligence and Investigation Capability and Capacity Building project involved around 48 countries, 51 anti-doping organizations and 48 law enforcement agencies in Europe.

The multi-phase project runs over two years and aims to:

  • Provide online and in-person training to anti-doping organizations staff to help them increase in-house capacity with regards to intelligence and investigations
  • Support collaboration and information sharing between European National Anti-Doping Organizations' (NADOs) I&I teams and law enforcement agencies
  • Demonstrate to decision makers the importance of I&I to prevent doping in sport
  • Raise public awareness of the prevalence and threat of doping in youth amateur sports, not only among elite athletes

The project is based on three core activities:

  • Education and Training

  • Annual Seminar for Decision Makers

  • Public Awareness Campaign

Project Overview

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    During the Final Conference embedded in WADA’s 2024 Symposium (Lausanne, 12 and 13 March 2024), an overview video was presented, showing all the steps that have been put in place within the two-year pilot-project, including actions in the three core activities:

    • 4 initial training sessions for NADOs, one online eLearning for law enforcement and 6 advanced workshops with 65 law enforcement and 71 NADO experts attending.
    • More than 60 operations launched during the lifespan of the project.  
    • A public awareness Campaign “Natural is enough” conducted with 13 million impressions reaching 20 European countries.
    • Awareness campaign for decision makers to promote the value of I&I.
    • A Final conference embedded in WADA’s 2024 Symposium.

Education and Training

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    Initial training and specialized workshops covered intelligence functions and key areas of doping investigations (Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs), prohibited substances, interviews, non-analytical cases, etc.) to increase the intelligence gathering and investigative capability in European NADOs and law enforcement agencies. We also aimed to launch operational activities with NADOs and law enforcement agencies, so that theoretical learnings can be applied to investigations in real time.

    This will enable future I&I experts to manage intelligence effectively and conduct their own investigations. The impact for clean sport will be that more non-analytical ADRVs are discovered and prosecuted as cases, removing from sport those that are exposed for doping. 

Annual Seminars for Decisions Makers and Final Conference

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    It is important to raise awareness, among decision makers such as ministries of sport, health and justice, and leadership of European anti-doping organizations, of doping in sport and the associated crimes committed.

    On an annual basis, WADA will organize a high-level seminar with partners such as Interpol and Europol, which targets such ministries and ADOs. In 2022, we held an information session at WADA's Annual Symposium in Lausanne, Switzerland. In March 2023, we organized a seminar for decision makers to demonstrate the importance of investigation and intelligence gathering. We concluded the project in 2024 with a conference where all training participants discussed outcomes and next steps of an international network of investigators, intelligence analysts and confidential sources managers, to strengthen collaboration and exchange of information.

Public Awareness Campaign

  • natural is enough

    While doping is generally viewed as a problem in elite sport, it is also a threat to public health and society at large, especially to youth. Today, society is confronted with:

    • Steroid use in schools
    • Amateur athletes doping in recreational sports events
    • Young people taking steroids in a bid to 'look good'
    • Presence of criminal underworld in trafficking prohibited substances
    • Unregulated supply of non-sanitized drugs through the internet
    • Doping substances are very easy to access with limited penalties for both the consumer and the trafficker

Sustainability - GAIIN

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    Following the success of the European I&I Project, WADA, in collaboration with INTERPOL, Sport Integrity Australia, Sport Integrity Commission New Zealand and other partners, is expanding the concept to create the Global Anti-Doping Intelligence and Investigation Network (GAIIN). The first region to which the project will unfold is Asia/Oceania, which will take place between 2024-2026.  

    The project aims to achieve the following steps in Asia/Oceania: 

    • Identify I&I needs of the 61 NADOs from Asia/Oceania through a questionnaire 
    • Deliver four initial trainings online between November 2024 and July 2025 
    • Provide eLearning for all law enforcement participants 
    • Deliver six on-site advanced workshops between March and November 2025 
    • Coordinate/support operations conducted by law enforcement and NADOs 
    • Carry out a public awareness campaign in 2025 
    • Deliver a final conference in 2026   
    • Conduct a legal framework study 
  • 2024 Annual Symposium - I&I sessions feedback from participants

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    First of all, allow me to congratulate you and all the WADA team on the great success of the 2024 WADA Annual Symposium. As always, the highlights are on the main stages, but we can't forget all the background work regarding the travel and accommodations of the participants that was done behind the scenes.
    I also want to thank you very much for inviting me to the Symposium and organizing all activities during it. It was a pleasure to meet you and our colleagues from different countries.
    Thanks a lot for this possibility to you personally and to all your wonderful Team. You know there is not a good time for our state and all our citizens and such trips, meetings and communication give power and admire me to go forward. And it is very important for my professional activity and my personal life as well.
    The whole I&I project was very instructive and I wish you a lot of success with the further rollout around the world. I have no doubt that we will see each other in the future at one symposium or another. Thank you for the opportunity to be part of this great project.
    Thank you once again for this great project. It was a big honor to participate in it. Good luck in Asia 😊
    And thank you very much for organizing everything around this great event! It was a great Symposium and it really worked out to show the importance of I&I for the entire anti-doping system!
    First of all I would like to thank you for the invitation and hospitality. The symposium exceeded my expectations and it showed me the importance of cooperation with your organization in the investigations of criminal offences in the field of illegal substances in sports.
    Once again, we would like to thank you for the dedication and all your efforts for WADA IICAP Building Project.
    Thank you very much for the opportunity to take part in the IICAP Building Project and the annual symposium. 😊 Our police is really committed now and the NADO-Police cooperation seems to be stronger than ever. Once again, thank you!
    First of all, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to attend the Final conference at the 2024 WADA Annual Symposium. :) It was literally a spectacular occasion for meeting a lot of interesting people from the anti-doping and law enforcement environment accros the Europe and the world. It has been a pleasure to meet all of you from WADA and be part of the workshop in Warsaw last year which brought new ideas and contacts. I really appreciate it a lot. I hope to see you again in the future.
    I want to express my gratitude for inviting me to participate in the conference. It was an enriching experience and I am truly thankful for the opportunity to contribute. Your invitation meant a lot to me and I thoroughly enjoyed being part of the event.
    Thank you and the whole team again for the invitation to the WADA Symposium. It was not only a wonderful meeting but also again the perfect chance to get in touch with other NADOs and Law Enforcement Agencies.
    I would like to thank for the opportunity to attend a cool WADA event, to see people I already know and make new acquaintances. But most importantly, this is an amazing place to be inspired by new ideas and the spirit of new achievements.

About this pilot project

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    This 2-years project, implemented since June 2022, was selected by the EU following a call for proposals for EU pilot projects for Building capacity to better fight doping in sport in Europe (May 2021, Call reference: PPPA-SPORT-2021-FIGHT-DOPING ; Project reference: 101050036 - Anti-Doping Intelligence and Investigations Capacity and Capability Building in Europe). 

    The regulatory framework for this EU Funding Programme is set out in: 

    • Regulation 2018/1046 (EU Financial Regulation) 
    • Commission Decision C(2021)1658 on the adoption of the 2021 Work Programme for the implementation of pilot projects and preparatory actions in the area of education, sport and culture 

    Pilot projects (PP) and Preparatory Actions (PA) introduce new initiatives that might turn into standing EU funding programmes. A Pilot Project is an initiative of an experimental nature designed to test the feasibility of an action and its usefulness and lasts not more than two years. The implementation of the pilot project will take due regard to complementarity with the EU Erasmus Sport programme.

    As mentioned in the call for proposals, the main objectives of the WADA Project II CAP BUILDING are: 

    • to develop a set of complementary measures and activities that would address the issues mentioned above and that would be concretely beneficial to a maximum number of European ADOs and more globally to the anti-doping system; 
    • to allow for ADOs to partner with WADA to conduct investigations, protect whistleblowers and to cooperate on joint investigations with law enforcement agencies and the global network of investigators; 
    • to build capacity of the European anti-doping system, reduce the prevalence of doping in sport and maximize the health benefits generated by the practice of clean sport by the European youth. 

Disclaimer

This project is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency, the granting authority. Neither the European Union nor the European Education and Culture Executive Agency can be held responsible for them. 

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