Rio doping lab has increased security after Sochi scandal

RIO DE JANEIRO — There will be no hole in the wall. Urine samples will not be swapped out.

To the best of their ability, International Olympic Committee and lab officials are trying to learn the painful lessons of the Russian doping scandal as they test samples at the Rio Olympics.

Add those to the issues with the Rio laboratory that led the World Anti-Doping Agency to suspend its accreditation in June, and the testing during these Olympics has looked different than what it did two years ago.

“I’m glad to say the laboratory has been performing superbly,” said Richard Budgett, the IOC’s medical director.

These Games are the first since a report released by Canadian lawyer Richard McLaren in July showed a complete subversion of the testing process at the Sochi Olympics in 2014.

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That report confirmed media reports from 60 Minutes and the New York Times in May in which Russian athletes were able to dope during the Games. Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov, the former director of the Moscow lab, told the Times that athletes’ urine samples were passed through a hole in the wall and clean urine was swapped out for dirty urine.

The McLaren Report confirmed that.

“Of course, we look at ourselves. We look at our colleagues. We think how can we do better and be better sure that something like that can’t happen?” said Budgett. “At the time we thought we had great expertise in place, but when you have the director of the laboratory involved in that way it is a challenge.

“We have to do everything to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

In Rio, that has included several steps. Samples are immediately tested when they arrive at the lab, reducing the chance of tampering.

Budgett said the lab has a “huge security presence” from the National Guard and private firms. A network of surveillance cameras includes one pointed at the door of the freezer. A guard there logs everyone who goes in, and lab employees can only enter in pairs.

“The whole thing is very carefully controlled,” Budgett said. “Allayed to that, there will be forensic examination of samples as well to make sure that there’s been no tampering.”

The Rio lab itself faced its own issues before the Games. WADA has not said what the issue is that caused it to suspend the lab’s accreditation, but Budgett said the lab underwent a root cause analysis.

It also had a stress test with seven experts in the lab as officials tested samples for a number of substances over several days.

“It was perfectly clear why this mistake happened, and the processes were changed so that this really couldn’t happen again,” Budgett said.

As of Monday, the lab had tested 2,701 urine samples, 191 blood samples and 296 athlete biological passports. Another 1,000 tests are expected to be conducted before the Games close on Sunday.

“Of course, lessons have been learned,” Budgett said. “With the benefit of hindsight, you can always do things differently.”

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