Rugby rocked by doping scandal as six players sanctioned | Rugby | Sport

Six Georgian international rugby players and one member of support staff have been found to have breached anti-doping regulations following a major joint investigation by the World Anti-Doping Agency and World Rugby. WADA and World Rugby have released statements confirming that five instances of sample substitution took place between 2019 and 2023.

The joint-operation, named Operation Obsidian, examined allegations that players had been participating in “sample substitution in blatant contravention of the rules”. Sample substitution, the act of replacing an athlete’s urine or blood sample with another, is a serious anti-doping rule violation, classified as Tampering (Class M2) under the WADA Prohibited List.

World Rugby confirmed on Friday that the investigation was initiated when irregularities in urine samples were identified by World Rugby’s athlete passport management programme.

According to World Rugby’s statement, six players and a member of support staff have been charged and sanctioned “in relation to an orchestrated scheme involving recreational drugs and sample substitution”.

However, the full disciplinary process has not yet been completed, and the outcomes and sanctions against the seven individuals have not yet been published.

In a statement, WADA president Witold Banka suggested that further sanctions could follow in Georgian sport. By way of follow-up, WADA has already extracted and collected samples from other Georgian athletes in different sports.

“What has been happening in Georgian rugby is outrageous and will send shockwaves through Georgian sport and government, as well as the global game of rugby,” said Banka. “I want to thank WADA’s independent Intelligence and Investigations team for their diligence and expertise in relentlessly pursuing this operation with determination and professionalism.

“I also praise World Rugby’s commitment to uncovering the facts and its willingness to work collaboratively with WADA to deliver this strong result for rugby.

“This is not the end of the story as further investigation is now going on deeper into Georgian sport. WADA has brought Operation Obsidian’s findings to the attention of the Government of Georgia to address the issues in the Georgian Anti-Doping Agency.

“As the next steps are being considered, clearly, WADA has lost confidence in GADA’s anti-doping program and wholesale changes must now be made by the relevant authorities.”

WADA Director, Intelligence and Investigations, Günter Younger, said: “Operation Obsidian highlights the complex nature of sample substitution cases, from the legal, investigative, scientific, and forensic points of view, which require extensive expertise to successfully reveal and corroborate. Substantial investigative powers are essential to address this type of ADRV properly and effectively.

“I thank our colleagues from World Rugby. Significant financial and human resources were dedicated to investigating these cases, including through the collection of reference samples, the transfer of samples to specific laboratories, and the conducting of numerous further analyses.

“World Rugby’s long-term storage program proved instrumental in substantiating the overall investigations. This case clearly demonstrates the critical importance of storing samples over time.”