Sports doping cases see increase

China's anti-doping authorities Wednesday said there was a significant rise in doping violations in the first half of this year, likely related to an upcoming key national event which will be used to appraise the work of local sports authorities.

The China Anti-Doping Agency said Wednesday that eight athletes had tested positive in the second quarter of the year, including one through the use of a biological passport.

The athletes from sports including athletics, body building, boxing and kayaking were split evenly between men and women. They have been provisionally suspended while waiting for their sport associations to decide on punishments.

Among them, Wang Jiali, a marathon runner who ranked 58th at the London Olympic Games, became the first caught via the biological passport program which monitors an athlete's blood profile over time to detect signs of doping.

China introduced the biological passport scheme in 2012.

There have been 12 cases this year, equaling the total of last year. One case surfaced during boxing preliminaries for the China National Games to be held later this month.

To some extent, the growing number of positive cases is related to the competition, Zhao Jian, a deputy head of the agency, told the Global Times.

The national games draws teams representing provincial regions. Good results are viewed as work achievements for local sport bureaus and usually bring medal winners higher rewards than world titles do.

As a result, some athletes risk pursuing medals and rewards through illegal methods, Zhao said. "This year's testing result indicates a more serious situation for us and we bear great pressure," he noted.

Even though China has some world's best anti-doping technologies, Zhao said it's difficult to bring all athletes under tests, citing lack of personnel and funds. "The program is a helpful supplement for traditional tests, but it can only be applied to a limited number of sports, such as swimming and cycling, for detecting a certain number of performance-enhancing substances."

"Doping is an ethical problem rather than a technological one," said Han Yong, a professor with the Capital University of Physical Education and Sports, noting that athletes should have self-disciplinary awareness to refuse doping.