Korean athletes undergo drug testing

The World Anti- Doping Agency (WADA) was discovered August 23 to have conducted secret doping tests of Korean athletes participating in the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics to find evidence of drug abuse. In this connection, Olympic authorities brought with them the urine samples of some of the Korean athletes for the Olympic games, including those on the badminton and judo teams.

The WADA conducted doping tests on six out of 17 Korean Olympic badminton players who were staying in a hotel in Malaysia while attending the 2000 Malaysia Open, it was confirmed.

The WADA also sent its inspectors without prior notice to a site in Sydney where Korean players were undergoing training and took urine samples from them for examinations, related officials disclosed.

Kim Keun-Youl, a member of the medical subcommittee of the International Olympic Committee, said that the WADA, as an organization independent from the IOC, is authorized to determine the objects of the drug examinations and their permissible quantity. Therefore, the Korean athletes must be extraordinary alert regarding drug abuse, as they used to take restoratives to enhance their stamina.

Bae Keuk-In bae2150@donga.com