THE Philippine Athletics Track and Field Association will not engage nor tolerate the use of banned substances among its athletes.
Patafa president Philip Ella Juico said this in support of the International Association of Athletics Federations stand.
The IAAF made such a stand after the World AntiDoping Agency released a report made by Prof. Richard McLaren after the 2012 London Olympics, and this became the reason why many Russian athletes were banned during the 2016 Rio de Janiero Olympics.
“We do not engage in doping. First, it’s unethical. Second, we (Patafa) cannot afford it,” said Juico, who talked about the Patafa’s stand in his capacity as a member of the IAAF Values Commission.
According to McLaren's report, more than 1,000 Russian athletes across 30 sports were involved in or beneï¬ ted from “an institutional conspiracy” of doping.
The cover-up, which dates back to at least 2011, evolved into a sophisticated doping program on “an unprecedented scale”
In a statement sent to the Patafa, the IAAF said agrees with Prof. McLaren that it is time that this manipulation stops and with this aim has been working in close cooperation with Prof. McLaren’s team and WADA and continues to do so.
“Based on the individual athletes that Prof. McLaren’s team have shared with us, over half (53%) of the elite athletes have already been sanctioned or are currently undergoing disciplinary proceedings,” said Juico in quoting the McLaren report.