World Athletics debars 20 athletes from Olympics 2021 for failing to comply with anti-doping rules    

World Athletics (WA) has debarred ten Nigerian athletes from competing at the Olympics 2021. Nigeria, clubbed in category A of high-risk doping nations, failed to follow WA's anti-doping rules in the buildup to the Tokyo Games.

“National Federations must play their part in supporting anti-doping efforts. The eligibility rules for athletes from ‘Category A’ countries are very clear and compliance is essential for cementing the required long-term changes and ensuring a level playing field for clean athletes,” David Howman, Chair of the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) Board, said in a statement on Wednesday.

Six other nations apart from Nigeria have faced the heat for failing to comply with WA's minimum testing guidelines before the Olympics. This includes three athletes from Belarus and Ukraine and one each from Ethiopia and Morocco.

Distance running powerhouse Kenya also suffered a setback as two of its athletes were debarred from the Olympics.

Nigeria was included in category A at the start of 2020 following a continued period of weak domestic testing levels.

Since all seven countries are in category A, the respective national federations are required to conduct a prescribed minimum out-of-competition testing before major competitions including the Olympics.

“The national teams of category A federations are deemed to have the highest doping risk and considered as a threat to the overall integrity of the sport. The key requirement is that an athlete from a category A country must undergo at least three no-notice out-of-competition tests (urine and blood) conducted no less than three weeks apart in the ten months leading up to a major event. Only then do they become eligible to represent their national team at the major championships or the Olympic Games,” the AIU said in a statement.

Belarus, Bahrain, Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, and Ukraine were identified as the category A federations for 2021.

Over 1600 out-of-competition tests have been administered in the domestic programs of these federations (in addition to AIU tests on their athletes in the International Registered Testing Pool) since the start of 2021.

“I must underline that there have been significant improvements in anti-doping efforts in most of the category A countries. But there remains a long way to go in some circumstances,” David added.