DownloadOverview
About Us
Snapshot of ASADA
Our vision
Australia’s driving force for pure performance in sport.
Our mission
To protect Australia’s sporting integrity through the elimination of doping.
Legislative basis
ASADA is the Australian national anti-doping organisation, established in 2006. It is the entity with prime responsibility for the Australian Government’s commitment, through its acceptance of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Convention against Doping in Sport, to implement the principles of the Code.
ASADA is an Australian Government body corporate within the Health and Ageing portfolio. ASADA operates under the ASADA Act and the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority Regulations 2006 (ASADA Regulations), including the National Anti-Doping scheme. ASADA is a prescribed agency for the purposes of the Financial Management and Accountability Act 1997 (the FMA Act) and its operations are subject to the Public Service Act 1999.
ASADA’s activities are governed by its legislative framework and its obligations to implement the Code, the Prohibited List and the International Standard for Testing (IST).
Minister
ASADA reports to the Hon. Kate Ellis MP, Minister for Sport. The powers of the responsible Minister in relation to ASADA include those outlined in appendix D.
Role and functions
The Australian Government, through ASADA, aims to develop a sporting culture free from doping in which performance is purely dependent on an athlete’s talent, determination, training, courage and honesty. To achieve this pure performance, ASADA works to provide a comprehensive anti-doping program for the Australian sporting community, encompassing deterrence, detection and enforcement activities.
Our primary functions include:
- doping control
- education
- investigations of possible anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs)
- presentation of cases at hearings
- monitoring NSOs for their compliance with the ASADA legislation and the Code.
The functions, powers and delegations of ASADA (in accordance with the ASADA legislation) are explained in appendix E.
Values
Developing a level playing field in sport is the foundation of a successful strategy to deter the use of prohibited substances and methods in sport.
We have clear legislative powers to manage potential doping violations, such as the presence and use of prohibited substances. We work positively with athletes, support personnel and sports to ensure education is tailored to their specific needs.
Our priority is to protect clean athletes, and the sports in which they compete, through comprehensive education and awareness-raising around the risks and the repercussions of doping.
As Australia’s driving force for pure performance, we strive to shape an agenda that achieves a level playing field in Australian and international sport.
We are committed to the Australian Public Service (APS) Values as set out in the Public Service Act. As an organisation, we also strive to be respected for the results we achieve for the Australian community and our:
- integrity
- professionalism
- ethical and fair decision-making
- passion and commitment
- agility.
Organisational structure
During 2008–09 we continued to refine our organisational structure to better reflect our strategic direction. The following organisational chart reflects our structure at 30 June 2009.
Figure 1: Organisational structure at 30 June 2009
Australia’s anti-doping framework
Figure 2 shows Australia’s anti-doping framework and its mechanism for implementing the principles of the Code.
Figure 2: Australia’s anti-doping framework
ASADA members
The ASADA members operate in accordance with powers and functions prescribed under the ASADA Act and the NAD scheme. The ASADA Act provides for the appointment of a Chair and up to six members (including a Deputy Chair) by the Minister for Sport. The Chair has additional Chief Executive functions and powers under the Financial Management and Accountability Act and the Public Service Act.
Key activities to which ASADA members contributed in 2008–09 included:
- the introduction and implementation of the new NAD scheme that incorporates the 1 January 2009 changes to the Code and general administrative amendments
- reporting on the compliance of NSOs to the Code
- approval of major ASADA policies such as the Athlete Whereabouts Policy, the Education Framework and the Strategic Communications Plan
- input into the Australian Government’s submission to WADA on the draft 2010 Prohibited List
- approval of ASADA’s 2009–10 Test Distribution Plan (TDP)
- input into, and approval of, the ASADA Strategic Plan 2008–11
- operating the Anti-Doping Rule Violation Committee, as a sub-committee of the members
- decisions as required under the ASADA Act and the NAD scheme.
| Position | Name | Date commenced | Date ending | Meetings eligible to attend | Meetings attended |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chair | Mr Richard Ings | 14 March 2006 | 13 September 2009 | 8 | 7 |
| Member Deputy Chair | Dr Brian Sando* | 14 March 2006 | 28 March 2010 | 8 | 8 |
| Member | Mr John Black | 14 March 2006 | 31 December 2009 | 8 | 6 |
| Member | Ms Jennifer Clark | 14 March 2006 | 13 June 2011 | 8 | 8 |
| Member | Professor Andrew McLachlan | 14 March 2006 | 28 March 2010 | 8 | 8 |
| Deputy Chair | Mr Geoff Levy | 14 March 2006 | 30 December 2008 | 5 | 5 |
| Member | Ms Nicole Livingstoneˆ | 14 March 2006 | 15 December 2008 | 4 | 3 |
* Dr Sando was appointed as Deputy Chair on 12 March 2009. Dr Sando’s appointment as Deputy Chair ends on 31 December 2009. ˆ Mr Levy resigned from his appointment with effect from 30 December 2008. ^ Ms Livingstone resigned from her appointment with effect from 15 December 2008. |
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Mr Richard Ings (Chair)
Richard Ings was appointed as ASADA’s first Chair with the launch of ASADA on 14 March 2006. Before this, Mr Ings was the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Sports Drug Agency. For five years Mr Ings had held the position of Executive Vice President, Rules and Competition, with the ATP Tour, the governing body of the men’s professional tennis circuit, where he was responsible for that sport’s anti-doping and anti-corruption programs.
Dr Brian Sando OAM (Deputy Chair)
Dr Brian Sando is a sports medicine practitioner, the Chair of the Australian Olympic Committee’s Medical Commission and a member of the Commonwealth Games Federation Medical Commission. Dr Sando has worked as Medical Officer to seven Australian Olympic teams (four as Senior Medical Director) and is a former president of Sports Medicine Australia. He is also a member of WADA’s Health, Medical and Research Committee and the FINA Doping Control Review Board. Dr Sando is Chair of ASADA’s ADRV Committee.
Mr John Black (Member)
John Black, a former Senator for Queensland, chaired the Senate Inquiry into Drugs in Sport that led to the establishment of what was then the Australian Sports Drug Agency, and the design of drug testing regimes for Australian sport.
Ms Jennifer Clark (Member)
Jennifer Clark is a non-executive director with an extensive background in business and finance. She has been on various Australian Government boards since 1991, including the Australian Sports Commission and the Australian Sports Foundation. Ms Clark is Chair of ASADA’s Audit Committee.
Professor Andrew McLachlan (Member)
Professor Andrew McLachlan is a pharmacist, teacher and researcher at the University of Sydney and Concord Hospital, with expertise in clinical pharmacology and drug testing. An educator of pharmacists and other health professionals, Professor McLachlan is also a consultant to industry and government in the evaluation and safe use of medicines.
Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) Committee
Section 47(i)(b) of the ASADA Act allows ASADA to delegate functions and powers to a committee consisting of two or more ASADA members.
The Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) Committee is one of these committees. It meets fortnightly and its core membership is made up of three ASADA members: Dr Brian Sando (Chair), Mr Richard Ings and Professor Andrew McLachlan. The meetings are not restricted to these three members – all members may attend.
The functions of the ADRV Committee include:
- to determine, based on ASADA Legal Services’ recommendations, whether ASADA should issue a ‘show cause’ notification letter to athletes or support personnel who have potentially committed ADRVs
- to determine, based on Legal Services’ recommendations, whether there is sufficient evidence to make a finding of a possible ADRV and thus place the relevant details onto the RoF
- to make recommendations to sport of the appropriate sanction or consequence for ADRVs
- to review ASADA’s result management functions, and monitor laboratory reports of elevated testosterone/epitestosterone ratios (or other naturally occurring hormones), and
- to review the progress of ASADA’s testing and investigation activities.
The ADRV Committee also decides whether any tribunal decision – such as decisions by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal or the Court of Arbitration for Sport – should be subject to appeal by ASADA, in cases where ASADA has a right of appeal. It also gives guidance to management on matters related to testing, investigations, result management, or legal services actions.
| Date of meeting | Dr Brian Sando (Chair) | Prof Andrew McLachlan (Deputy Chair) | Richard Ings | Jennifer Clark | John Black | Geoff Levy | Nicole Livingstone |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 July 08 |  |
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| 9 July 08 | < |
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| 23 July 08 | |
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| 20 Aug 08 | |
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| 1 Oct 08 | |
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| 15 Oct 08 | |
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| 29 Oct 08 | |
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| 26 Nov 08 | |
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| 10 Dec 08 | |
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| 21 Jan 09 | |
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| 4 Feb 09 | |
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| 18 Feb 09 | |
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| 4 Mar 09 | |
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| 18 Mar 09 | |
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| 1 April 09 | |
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| 15 April 09 | |
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| 1 May 09 | |
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| 13 May 09 | |
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| 27 May 09 | |
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| 10 June 09 | |
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| 24 June 09 | |
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| TOTAL | 23 | 18 | 19 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 2 |