Latest news with #ProtectYourSport
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
How university taught Philippa Emery about anti-doping
By Milly McEvoy Philippa Emery learnt two important things at university in addition to her course – how to row and about anti-doping. The 22-year-old from Letchworth Garden City first took up rowing when she started studying at Durham University and has since become an U23 world champion. During her biology studies, Emery also undertook research into how blood transfusions are used in doping. She is now using her position as an elite athlete to speak up on the importance of being clued up on keeping sport clean. 'My first interaction with UKAD [UK Anti-Doping] was at a club level because I never competed at a high enough level as a junior athlete,' Emery said. 'At a club level I was interacting with UKAD's education sessions which have to be completed to race for British Rowing as a part of the national testing pool. 'We have education sessions now, but they are a lot more focused around the World Championships and the levels of diligence you have to go through when racing at those events.' A sporty child, Emery found her true passion during a Learn To Row session at Durham University in 2020. She has since rocketed through the ranks and now has her sights set on competing internationally on the senior stage and representing Great Britain at the LA 2028 Olympics. For now, Emery is remaining vigilant for signs of doping, with her teammates at Leander Club holding each other accountable. This comes after UKAD reported record numbers of doping reports being made in 2024 across 30 sports via its Protect Your Sport reporting campaign. She added: 'Within the team that I am situated in, everyone encourages those conversations, we are very open about it, we are very frank with each other. 'It seems silly, but it is easy to slip up if you are not informed and you are not checking, so everyone encourages conversations about clean sport. 'But also, because we are in such close proximity all of the time it is very easy to check on other people's behaviours and attitudes, you get to know each other really well and you can tell if something is up. 'It is encouraging that UKAD are getting more reports coming forward because everyone needs to band together to protect their sport. 'It comes from the athletes and coaches to begin with, we are the ones on the ground training together every day, so if anyone is going to pick up on it, it is probably going to be us.' To counter potential concerns around identification when reporting, UKAD has recently launched an anonymous SMS and WhatsApp service. This allows someone to report their suspicions of doping and have a two way conversation with UKAD without them being able to see the reporters name or number. This is welcomed by Emery, who explained how crucial such methods are to keeping sport clean. 'It is really important because it is a commitment about integrity and about fairness,' she said. 'Athletes should be able to compete knowing they are on a level playing field and you should be able to compete knowing that your successes are your successes. 'Knowing that your hard work got you your achievements and you are not being cheated to silver when it could have been a gold for example.' You can report doping suspicions to UKAD by WhatsApp and SMS (07822 023233), email (pys@ online (search: Protect Your Sport), or by phone (0800 032 2332). To find out more and to report your suspicions of doping, search Protect Your Sport.
The Independent
28-01-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Record number of whistleblowers report suspected sports doping in UK in 2024
The battle against sports doping saw a record number of whistleblowers come forward in 2024, according to the latest figures released on Tuesday. UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) was handed 211 reports of suspected doping misconduct by its intelligence and investigations team. The reports covered 30 sports in 2024, with the Paris Olympics at the heart of a packed sporting calendar. The latest figure extends a trend with reports increasing year-on-year since 2020. UKAD confirmed it had received 184 in 2023, 110 in 2022 and 75 in 2021, with the latest figure an increase of almost 15 percent. Sport's battle against doping has seen US Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) state that it 'fully supports' the US government's decision to withhold a $3.6m (£2.8m) payment to the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) following the organisation's handling of a major doping scandal. UKAD launched the 'Protect Your Sport' initiative in November 2020 to encourage whistleblowers to report anonymously. UKAD's head of intelligence and investigations Mario Theophanous said: "It's important to UKAD that athletes and the sporting community feel safe talking to us, and that we normalise the reporting of doping in sport. "One of the main reasons that we release these reporting numbers is to show individuals who are unsure or uncertain about reporting that you're not alone - there are others like you who want to protect the integrity of their sport." UKAD has launched an anonymous SMS and WhatsApp service for reporting suspected misconduct. Theophanous added: "The service allows our investigators to reply to the person reporting in real time, gathering the necessary evidence we need to conduct our investigations. "We hope to encourage other individuals who may have information but fear reporting it, to take the decisive action and raise their concerns to 'Protect Your Sport' anonymously."
BBC News
28-01-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Ukad received record number of tip-offs in 2024
A record number of whistleblowers reported suspicions of sports doping in the UK to it in 2024, UK Anti-Doping intelligence and investigations team received 211 reports of suspected doping misconduct across 30 sports last Protect Your Sport initiative was launched in 2020 to encourage whistleblowers to report the number of reports has increased year on year since then, with Ukad receiving 184 across 25 sports in 2023, and 110 in 2022."It's important to Ukad that athletes and the sporting community feel safe talking to us, and that we normalise the reporting of doping in sport," Ukad's head of intelligence and investigations Mario Theophanous said."One of the main reasons that we release these reporting numbers is to show individuals who are unsure or uncertain about reporting that you're not alone - there are others like you who want to protect the integrity of their sport."Ukad recently launched an anonymous SMS and WhatsApp service for reporting suspected misconduct."The service allows our investigators to reply to the person reporting in real time, gathering the necessary evidence we need to conduct our investigations," Theophanous added."We hope to encourage other individuals who may have information but fear reporting it, to take the decisive action and raise their concerns to 'Protect Your Sport' anonymously."
