The purposes of the World Anti-Doping Code and the World Anti-Doping Program which supports it are:
- To protect the Athletes’ fundamental right to participate in doping-free sport and thus promote health, fairness and equality for Athletes worldwide, and
- To ensure harmonized, coordinated and effective anti-doping programs at the international and national level with regard to the prevention of doping, including:
Education — to raise awareness, inform, communicate, to instill values, develop life skills and decision-making capability to
prevent intentional and unintentional anti-doping rule violations. Deterrence — to divert potential dopers, through ensuring
that robust rules and sanctions are in place and salient for all stakeholders.
Detection — an effective Testing and investigations system not only enhances a deterrent effect, but also is effective in protecting clean Athletes and the spirit of sport by catching those committing anti-doping rule violations, while also helping to disrupt anyone engaged in doping behavior.
Enforcement — to adjudicate and sanction those found to have committed an anti-doping rule violation.
Rule of law — to ensure that all relevant stakeholders have agreed to submit to the Code and the International Standards, and that all measures taken in application of their anti-doping programs respect the Code, the International Standards, and the principles of proportionality and human rights
The Code
The Code is the fundamental and universal document upon which the World Anti-Doping Program in sport is based. The purpose of the Code is to advance the anti-doping effort through universal harmonization of core anti-doping elements. It is intended to be specific enough to achieve complete harmonization on issues 10 World Anti-Doping Code 2021 where uniformity is required, yet general enough in other areas to permit flexibility on how agreed-upon anti-doping principles are implemented. The Code has been drafted giving consideration to the principles of proportionality and human rights.