Days after the world of athletics was hit by serious doping allegations, the sport has been accused of covering up how it dealt with scores of suspicious blood samples.
In the two years between 2006 and 2008, the body in charge of global athletics failed to examine as many as 150 samples from several countries, according to a report broadcast by a German network Monday.
This was a period before widespread changes were introduced to anti-doping procedures.
The allegations reported by German TV station WDR came less than a week after German broadcaster ZDF/ARD aired an hour-long programme documenting Russia’s alleged endemic use of banned substances. As with last week’s documentary, WDR released an English transcript after airing the report.
For months now the world of sport has lurched from one doping crisis to another. The most high profile was Lance Armstrong's confession on Oprah that he had, after years of denials, been doping all along.
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Not now John —
Also under the spotlight have been the various regulatory bodies charged with catching drug cheats. CNN spoke to WADA president John Fahey about the on-going doping revelations in cycling.
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Take up thy stethoscope and walk —
Fahey spoke about the ongoing Operation Puerto case in Madrid. Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes is accused of running a blood doping network for many top cyclists.
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A new machine —
This week sees the testimony of Tyler Hamilton, a former teammate of Armstrong. Hamilton's book 'The Secret Race' detailed his own experiences of doping.
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Burning bridges —
WADA has long been at odds with the UCI, cycling's governing body. Former WADA president Dick Pound earned the wrath of both the UCI and Lance Armstrong during his time as World Anti-Doping Agency president after constantly questioning the use of drugs in cycling. Although Pound's views have since been fully validated, he still warns that not enough is being done to combat doping.
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A saucerful of secrets —
Despite taking over 200 drug tests, Armstrong -- seen here leaving an anti-doping control center during the 2005 Tour de France -- never recorded a positive result, prompting some to question the real nature of modern-day sport.
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Run like hell —
Cycling is far from the only sport with a doping problem. South African runner Hezekiel Sepeng (left), who won silver in the 1996 Olympic 800m final but was later banned for using an anabolic steroid, now says dopers are like "thugs, stealing from those who are clean and taking their opportunity." He currently coaches aspiring youngsters in his homeland.
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Us and them —
Ben Johnson's late coach Charlie Francis -- seen here moments after the Canadian sprinter won the 1988 Olympic 100m final -- insisted that his charge, who was later stripped of his title for drug abuse, had to dope to literally keep pace with his rivals.
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East Germany legacy —
East German swimmer Rica Reinisch shot to fame when winning three golds in the 1980 Olympics at the age of 15. To her dismay, she later learned she had been doped by the Stasi -- with testosterone-based steroids that enlarged her ovaries and caused two miscarriages. Now a mother of two, she regrets never knowing how she would have done without drugs.
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Shine on you crazy diamond —
Andreas Krieger is surely the most visible face of the government-backed East German doping program, having won gold in the women's shot put at the 1986 European Championships. Unwittingly pumped full of anabolic steroids, Heidi Krieger was so confused about her sexuality she "didn't know who (she) was anymore" -- and eventually had a sex change in 1997. Krieger is now an ardent anti-doping campaigner.
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Photos: Some of sports' biggest suspensions
Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was suspended without pay for the remainder of the NFL season on November 18 for violating the league's personal conduct policy. Peterson has been on the exempt/commissioner's permission list -- which kept him off the field, with pay -- since September after allegations he disciplined his 4-year-old son too harshly with a "switch" or thin stick. Initially charged with felony child abuse, Peterson pleaded no contest to misdemeanor reckless assault in November. He was reinstated in April.
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Photos: Some of sports' biggest suspensions
Running back Ray Rice was cut by the NFL's Baltimore Ravens and suspended indefinitely by the league in 2014. Those measures came after video from a casino elevator showed he delivered a knockout punch to his then-fiancee and current wife, Janay. Prior to the revelation of the video, Rice was given only a two-game suspension by the league. Rice called his actions "inexcusable" in July. After his suspension, he sent a text to CNN stating, "I'm just holding strong for my wife and kid that's all I can do right now."
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Tennis player Viktor Troicki completed an 18-month suspension for not providing a blood sample for a doping test at the Monte Carlo Masters in April 2013. One of the world's top tennis players at the time, Troicki claimed a doctor conducting the blood test allowed him to miss the procedure. When he returned to the sport in July, the 28-year-old player was ranked 842nd.
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Uruguay soccer star Luis Suarez served a four-month suspension from the sport after he bit Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini on the shoulder during a World Cup game in June. He was also banned for nine international matches and fined $111,000.
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Cyclist Lance Armstrong lost his seven Tour de France titles and received a lifetime ban by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency after he declared in 2012 that he wouldn't fight charges of illegal doping. Later, he admitted to using banned performance-enhancing drugs during his cycling career.
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New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez served a 162-game suspension for doping -- the most severe in baseball history for performance-enhancing drug use. Missing the entire 2014 season cost Rodriguez his $25 million salary.
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Basketball player Ron Artest, now named Metta World Peace, was suspended for 86 games in 2004 after he jumped into the stands and fought with fans in Detroit. The melee began after somebody threw a drink on him.
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Tonya Harding, the first female figure skater to complete a triple axel in competition, received a lifetime ban from U.S. Figure Skating after her ex-husband attacked rival skater Nancy Kerrigan before the 1994 Winter Olympics. The U.S. federation concluded that Harding, seen here at left next to Kerrigan, knew about the attack beforehand and engaged in "unethical behavior."
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In 1967, Muhammad Ali was stripped of his World Boxing Association title and banned by virtually every state's licensing authority after he refused induction into the U.S. Army and became a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War. He returned to boxing more than three years later and eventually regained his title.
During Monday’s edition of the “Sport Inside,” a former member of the IAAF’s medical commission – who is not identified – said the samples in question were from athletes representing Spain, Kenya, Greece, Germany, Morocco, Russia and at least one from Britain.
“Just take a look the haemoglobin values – how they have risen in only four months by 38% and in the next four months they have fallen again by 16%”, the official explains, according to the English translation of the documentary provided by the broadcaster to CNN.
“It’s obvious that there’s something wrong there. That simply cannot be. It is absolutely clear to see and physiologically simply cannot be explained. This can only be doping.”
President of Spain’s athletics federation Jose Maria Odriozola said his organization received no notification of any suspicious samples from the IAAF.
“When we receive information of that type, we immediately carry out surprise doping tests on the suspicious athletes,” Odriozola said in an email sent to CNN.
He also outlined that Spanish track athletes are required to supply their “blood passport” – a method used to monitor any potential doping violations – a week before competition.
Both British Athletics and UK Anti-Doping have declined to comment, while both the Russian Athletics Federation and Russian Anti-Doping Agency have so far failed to reply to CNN’s request for comment.
It also said that “a member of the IAAF Medical and Anti-Doping Commission would not know whether follow-up tests would have been conducted or not.”
The athlete biological passport program was launched in 2009, ensuring athlete’s blood samples were stored electronically and monitored over time, according to the IAAF.
Samples collected prior to 2009, according to the IAAF, “do not have the same level of reliability and strength as the post-2009 values which were collected under strict and stringent conditions.”
The governing body also stated that any samples taken before 2009 were only used as “secondary evidence,” or to arrange “trigger” follow-up urine tests.
The IAAF also insists that “abnormal results were duly followed-up by the IAAF, whenever possible logistically.”
The Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA,) announced it would investigate the allegations, while the president of the country’s athletics federation told Reuters the claims were “a pack of lies.”
