Kenya to train, sensitise lawyers on anti-doping laws to help fight scourge

Kenya has decried the lack of capacity in having competent lawyers to handle doping cases, Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) CEO Japhter Rugut said on Saturday.

"We currently have many matters in court at the Sports Disputes Tribunal we have instituted since inception. What we have found out is that we have very few lawyers in this country who have specialised in Anti-Doping issues," said Rugut.

The International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) has classified Kenya, Ethiopia, Belarus and Ukraine as countries with highest potential of athletes abusing banned substances to enhance their performance, reports Xinhua news agency.

Rugut said ADAK will soon submit a written proposal that will provide the framework on how it aspires to provide the technical grounding to advocates through its legal department.

The country's anti-doping agency will put in place mechanisms to ensure that lawyers participating in the sensitisation and training forums earn Continuous Professional Development (CPD) points through the Law Society of Kenya (LSK).

LSK CEO Mercy Wambua welcomed the proposal, saying skills in the area of anti-doping is one of the areas that would benefit lawyers.

"We look forward to working with ADAK in this endeavor and urge our members to take up the opportunity and ground themselves in anti-doping (laws)," she said.

Over 50 Kenyan athletes have failed doping tests in the past six years. All Kenyan athletes going for international competition will be tested three times in the 10 months prior to World Championships and Olympics.

--IANS

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