Jamaica's anti-doping board resigns in wake of athletes' drug-testing crisis

The board of the Jamaican Anti-Doping Commission (JADCO) has reportedly resigned in the wake of a drug-testing crisis following concerns that Jamaica's athletes have not been tested rigorously enough.

Six Jamaican athletes have tested positive for banned substances in 2013, including former 100m world-record holder Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson, an Olympic relay gold medallist at the 2004 Athens Games.

According to the BBC, the Caribbean island's sports minister Natalie Neita-Headley stated that the government respected the collective decision of the eleven JADCO commissioners to resign, adding that the commissioners acknowledged that there is a public perception of the existence of conflicts of interests among some of the members of the commission.

Stating that the commissioners' decision have been taken in the national interest and in order to facilitate the re-structuring of JADCO, Neita-Headley further said that the resignations will take effect on December 31, 2013.

Although World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has the option to declare JADCO 'non-compliant' if it fails to resolve its problems, however, the minister insisted that such a sanction has not been taken, adding that at no time has WADA threatened to bar Jamaica from participating in any international events like the Olympic Games or the World Championship.