Issue date
Drug Free Sport NZ's testing programme is focused on high performance athletes, and those on a development pathway.
They don’t normally test at the lower end of sport, unless they receive information about possible doping in which case they are obliged to investigate regardless of the level.
Within high performance, limited resources mean that they have to prioritise their testing based on a range of risk factors, and that means that some athletes will get tested more than others. Sometimes a series of tests will be done on a particular athlete to create a profile – to help them monitor results over time.
Drug Free Sport NZ's doping control Officers can turn up at any time and at any location. They try to be unpredictable and, therefore, test at different times from morning to evening. They also try to coordinate with international federations to avoid double-ups and complement each other’s testing.
They know that testing doesn’t always happen at times that are convenient. Testing is not an everyday occurrence and they appreciate the support and cooperation of athletes to make the testing process as smooth and efficient as possible.
