The Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission (JADCO) has acquired a mobile testing unit to increase the testing capacity of the organisation. The newly retrofitted unit was officially handed over to the commission by Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia Grange, in a ceremony held at JADCO on Wednesday.
The mobile testing unit, which is disabled-friendly, consists of wheelchair ramps, support railings, restrooms for doping control, waiting areas to accommodate athletes and support personnel and storage areas.
The unit will allow the commission to conduct more in-competition and out-of-competition tests in remote locations, and will increase the efficiency of the national anti-doping programme.
Speaking at the event, Grange said, “This has been a dream for us and today our dream is a reality. I am going to be unveiling and launching this mobile unit that will be one of two such anti-doping mobile units that exists in the world, operated by a national anti-doping organisation. So Jamaica has now introduced the unit, and the only other national anti-doping organisation in the world that has a similar unit is the Japan Anti-Doping Agency, so we are very proud to be one of two.”
Chairman of JADCO, Alexander Williams, also said, “I am pleased to announce that the deployment of this mobile unit will expand the testing capacity of the commission. It will also improve the service we provide and enable us to travel across the island to test Jamaican athletes in a secure environment that meets the required international standards.”
Member of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association, Megan Tapper, said, “I am super impressed with the JADCO bus. I am happy that our government and our anti-doping agency are looking to the future and making us world leaders not only on the track but in anti-doping.”
JADCO was formally established in 2008 to execute the national anti-doping programme in accordance with the standards stipulated by the international governing body, the World Anti-Doping Agency. JADCO’s mission is to foster a dope-free environment in Jamaica that promotes the ethics and spirit of sport through education, testing, advocacy and co-ordination of an effective anti-doping programme in Jamaica. (Jamaica Observer)