Although the COVID-19 pandemic has brought sport and anti-doping efforts to a standstill, the fundamental right for all athletes to compete on a level playing field has never been more pertinent.
It is during challenging times such as these, that we are reminded that health comes before anything else. And at the World Baseball Softball Confederation, the health of our athletes, coaches, officials and fans has always been at the heart of any decision we take.
As the governing body of one of the most popular sports on the planet, played and watched by hundreds of millions of children and adults around the world, we have an enormous responsibility to ensure that our sport leads by example in the global fight against doping. And the sport of baseball has been recognized and commended by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for having implemented some of the most advanced anti-doping measures, which other pro sports can use as a model.
That is why today, on Play True Day, it is paramount that we as a community continue to raise awareness about importance of protecting clean sport.
The WBSC is regularly reviewing and updating its processes to stay on top of anti-doping across all its events, investing in new resources and expertise worldwide while, as a World Anti-Doping Code compliant member, our relationship with the WADA has never been stronger.
Over the past four years there has been an 84% increase in the number of anti-doping tests conducted by the WBSC across baseball and softball with a particular rise in the number of out-of-competition tests, which has increased three-fold.
WADA has made this year’s theme Play Safe on Play True Day 2020 and in today’s current climate, the values of staying safe, healthy and fit has gained greater importance.
The use of doping substances or doping methods to enhance performance is fundamentally wrong and can be harmful to an athlete’s health. It also severely damages the image and value of sport, whether or not the motivation to use drugs is to improve performance. To achieve integrity and fairness in sport, a commitment to clean sport is critical.
We therefore ask all of our athletes and the entire baseball-softball community around the world, to join on this special day, and campaign to protect the integrity of our sport. We ask our athletes, who are our greatest ambassadors, to ensure that everyone in our community play the game, free from any type of doping.
It is only by competing on a level playing field that we can truly protect the integrity of our sport.
