Be part of the team in Clean Sport Week (22 – 26 May)

UK Anti-Doping’s (UKAD) national awareness week, Clean Sport Week will run this year from 22 - 26 May and ‘Teamwork in Clean Sport’ is the theme. 

Since 2017, UKAD has been running the week to champion clean sport, education, and anti-doping initiatives across sports in the UK and to showcase its work in tackling anti-doping. 

Around every athlete, there is a team to help them succeed and to perform at their very best. All athletes have the responsibility of strict liability, they themselves alone are responsible for everything that goes into their bodies. However, the team around them - the Athlete Support Personnel: coaches, doctors, physiotherapists, parents, national governing body as well as sports councils also have a collective responsibility to create a positive culture that give athletes the confidence to play and win fairly.  

To kick off Clean Sport Week on 22 May, UKAD will be announcing the results of their annual public perception survey on doping in sport. They will also be hosting an in-person event, Clean Sport Week webinar, which will be broadcast live from Loughborough University. The expert panel will be exploring clean sport topics, providing tips and advice on being a team player and working & supporting athletes. It will be hosted by Olympic canoeist and BBC commentator, Helen Reeves. The panel include Diccon Edwards, Performance Director for GB Wheelchair Basketball, Jo Calvino, former British weightlifting champion, and a member of UKAD’s Athlete Commission, and Charlotte Beaman-Evans, Senior Lecturer in Physical Education at the University of Worcester. 

Other highlights during the week will be shared across UKAD’s social media channels which include an athlete digital focus day (23 May). Athletes will be discussing their clean sport responsibilities and sharing their experience of anti-doping, and the important checks they take to make sure they’re competing clean.   

On the following day, (24 May) coach Scott Murray and Stuart Barrow, Rugby Football League’s England Women’s Head Coach will also talk about their work with athletes, sharing advice on how they create positive environments that enable athletes to play fair according to the clean sport ethos.  

Dr David Pugh, Chief Medical Officer at British Curling will discuss how he, as an Athlete Support Personnel member (doctors, physios, nutritionists, and parents/guardians) supports athletes to play clean on 25 May.  

Additionally, Professor Nicola Philips OBE, Chair of UKAD’s Athlete Commission and registered sports physiotherapist, will be discussing her work with athletes and how to support them in the anti-doping process. This discussion will be hosted on Instagram, and she will be taking questions from the audience afterwards. 

Jane Rumble, UKAD’s Chief Executive, said: 

“It takes a team for an athlete to be at their best and the same can be said for UKAD. We rely on our team of partner organisations across the sporting community to help us to deliver clean sport education to every athlete - we couldn’t do this very important work alone.”  

“Clean Sport Week is a celebration of clean sport and a fantastic opportunity for all advocates to come together to share their experiences and learn from each other. And this year is no exception, we have assembled a great panel for the webinar which will, I’m sure produce interesting viewpoints and the rest of the week, promises to have something for everyone connected and interested in sport.” 

Jo Calvino former British National Weightlifting champion and UKAD Athlete Commission member, added: 

“When you’re an athlete, the team that surrounds you can have a huge impact on your career, they are a support system to help you to reach your very best and can play a crucial role in all aspects of your professional life.” 

“Before and during my career, I was surrounded by the best who guided me to make the right decisions including clean sport education. I’m taking part in this year’s Clean Sport Week as I want to promote the spirit of sport values to the next generation of athletes because it is always about playing and winning fairly.”   

UKAD’s Clean Sport Hub provides free education courses for athletes, students, coaches, and practitioners. UKAD is encouraging the sporting community to sign up to the Clean Sport Hub to learn more about anti-doping. 

Use the links below to follow @ukantidoping on social media to see a range of educational and exciting content throughout the week. 

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