Using artificial intelligence to step up the fight against doping
How the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and national organisations use AI, why people who cheat may use it too, how a simple online search could put an athlete's personal data at risk, and lessons from the Santorini Summit.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and how it can help fight doping were key topics at the Third Anti-Doping Summit of Central and Eastern European Countries. The meeting took place in Santorini and brought together officials from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and representatives from 26 countries.
The event explored new technologies that could help organisations study data, plan drug tests better and support investigations. Some of these tools can process large amounts of information and could help many official organisations, as well as other groups.
"We use AI to fight doping, but... it can also help people who cheat"
"Artificial intelligence is, of course, a new tool that all of us are now learning to use, in every area of life and in every part of the world," Sébastien Gillot, director of WADA's European Office, told Euronews.
He added, "It has tremendous power to help us understand trends, to identify the patterns offenders may be using and to analyse data so we can improve what we do, particularly when it comes to testing."
"Naturally, if these are useful tools for us, they can also be useful tools for those who cheat. So we need to be able to grasp precisely how we can use them and make sure they help us become stronger, all together."
Dora Hegyi, a former Hungarian gymnastics champion and vice-chair of WADA's Athletes' Council, said, "It was a very interesting discussion about the use of artificial intelligence and how it can help athletes to be more informed, but also how it can help national anti-doping organisations operate more effectively or more easily in their efforts to combat doping."
She added, "We had a very good discussion about the legal aspects, how national anti-doping organisations are already using artificial intelligence and what athletes really think about using AI."
"An athlete's AI search could be used against them"
Lawyer Penny Konitsioti also spoke about the legal issues. She is vice-chair of the Disciplinary Committee of Greece's National Anti-Doping Organisation. She explained, "When an athlete logs on to a platform and searches for something relating to their health or any other information connected to doping, they must know from the outset."
"It must also be clearly stated on the platform and in the terms of use, not hidden in the 'small print' but clearly summarised – that the information they search for might later be used in legal proceedings and could end up being used against them."
Konitsioti also stressed that AI should help the authorities responsible for anti-doping. For example, it could help them collect evidence for a court case or assist a sports judge. But it must never replace the required legal procedures or human judgement.
Protecting personal data is "crucial"
People at the summit agreed that new technology must come with clear safety measures. These include making sure that humans continue to oversee disciplinary cases. They also strongly stressed the importance of being open about how new tools are used and protecting people's personal data.
Former gymnast Dora Hegyi said, "If trust is 'built' so that AI systems are developed with athletes and not only for athletes, then it can work and can bear fruit in future programmes to fight doping".
Modern digital systems create new opportunities to fight doping, but they also make it more important to handle sensitive information carefully.
The summit stressed that technology must be used within a clear set of rules to protect personal data.
Being open, keeping information safe and keeping humans involved
At the Santorini summit, participants said that being open about how tools are used, keeping data safe and ensuring human oversight are essential to maintaining trust in the testing system. They also discussed changes to the rules for therapeutic use exemptions, which allow certain medicines for medical reasons, and the procedures for managing test results.
Participants at the summit also repeated that the global anti-doping community aims to use reliable, consistent procedures while fully respecting international rules and athletes' rights.