There are 11 ways to break the anti-doping rules. They’re known as the anti-doping rule violations. Only two of the violations involve having a substance in your system. Possessing, buying and distributing banned substances are some of other violations. Reading the rule violations, and understanding how they might apply to you, is the most important thing you can do to protect your status as a clean athlete. 

Read the rule violations

People sometimes break the Rules without meaning to. It's important to know what to look out for to keep yourself safe from a serious mistake. Here are a few important pieces of info to get you started: 

• Use Global DRO every year to check your medications

• Navigate the risks of supplements

• Know the rules around recreational drugs

• Understand if and when you need a Therapeutic Use Exemption 

• Learn how to report suspected doping 

Education is the best way to protect yourself from making anti-doping mistakes. It will help you better understand your rights and responsibilities as a clean athlete, and anti-doping pitfalls to avoid.  

You pay nothing for anti-doping education, whether it’s online or in-person. You can get started with an e-learning course or take part in a live workshop or webinar delivered by a current of former NZ representative athlete. 

Explore education opportunities

Athletes are at the heart of our anti-doping mahi. We encourage you to share your feedback on our anti-doping work whenever you get the chance. You can contact us by email or over the phone. You can complete a Post-Test Feedback Survey using the feedback card you’ll get after each test. If you’re an athlete in our testing pools, we’ll reach out to you at the end of the year to understand your year in anti-doping.  

Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us with any questions or suggestions you may have. We love to hear from you. 

Email us your feedback

Research shows that most athletes will approach a coach or support person for anti-doping information before any other source. Athletes rely on you, so you need to have a good understanding of anti-doping to support your athletes to play clean.  

The quickest and easiest way to build your clean sport knowledge is through our athlete support personnel e-learning course. You’ll take away critical information that’s targeted to your role, such as the anti-doping rule violations that apply to you and recognising doping risk factors in your athletes. 

Explore support personnel e-learning

Anti-doping rules don’t just apply to athletes. Seven of the 11 anti-doping rule violations also apply to support personnel. It’s essential that you know what they are and how they apply to you. 

Read more on our blog

Anti-Doping Rules and Rule Violations Explained

Coaches and athlete support personnel play an important role in supporting clean sport. You create the environment in which athletes train and grow. Make it one that promotes the values that support clean sport. 

You could do this by: 

• Reinforcing the importance of anti-doping tikanga like checking medications, updating Whereabouts information and keeping anti-doping education up-to-date;  

• Championing hard work, fair play and resilience over shortcuts and unethical behaviour; 

• Supporting athletes in times of stress and being mindful of putting unrealistic pressure on them; 

• Offering to be a representative for your athlete during the testing process if requested. 

• Keep athletes up-to-date by:

  • Signing up to receive our newsletter

  • Following us on social media

Read more on our blog

How athlete support personnel support clean sport

As whānau, you’re crucial to helping rangatahi develop the clean sport values and principles.  When rangatahi are young and just starting off in sport, doping is unlikely to be a major concern. But it’s good to reinforce clean sport values from the start. That might include teaching or modelling: 

• respect for the rules; 

• healthy nutrition; 

• training and recovery as a means to enhancing performance; 

• playing fairly; 

• the importance of a 'mastery' approach, which reinforces skill development and improvement over winning; 

• the value of mahi and determination over shortcuts. 

Useful links

• Read more on our blog: Nurturing champions: Clean sport tips for parents and whānau 

• Explore the Youth Education Programme

As rangatahi begin to compete at a higher level, they may be tested as part of our anti-doping programme. It’s a good idea to speak to them about doping and why it’s important to be a clean competitor.  

Your athlete may ask you to be their representative during the testing process. It’s good to know what that process looks like, just in case. 

Useful links

• Understand the testing process 

• Read about testing minors

• Keeping your child's sport clean: Tips for parents and whānau

• Learn about the NZ Sports Anti-Doping Rules

• Navigate supplement risks

• Explore clean sport e-learning (hint: Clean Sport 101 is great for beginners)

Almost 70 sports in New Zealand have adopted the Sports Anti-Doping Rules (Rules). Adopting the rules embeds a commitment to clean sport into the culture of your organisation.  

Some NSOs may be able to adopt the Rules by way of a resolution of their executive members. Other NSOs may require a resolution of an annual general meeting. 

When you adopt the rules, they generally bind your members, your support personnel and those who take part in events run under your roles.  

Once you have adopted the Rules, it is a good idea to educate your team and athletes to make sure they understand their anti-doping obligations. 

Get in touch with us if you need support with these processes.

Find out how to contact us

Doping presents a significant risk to athlete health, reputation and career. 

Historically, in New Zealand, over half of our doping offences are inadvertent. Clean sport education helps lower the chance that athletes will use a banned substance in ignorance. 

Through education, athletes will gain the knowledge and values they need to compete cleanly in sport. They’ll get a better understanding of the Rules, as well as their rights and responsibilities. Support personnel and NSO staff will understand the role they play in clean sport, and practical ways to support athletes to compete clean.  

Explore our education options

We want to help NSOs lower their risk and protect their athletes. To achieve this, we want to work closely with you to ensure that your athletes are well-informed. Sharing clean sport content across your channels is an easy and helpful way to reinforce clean sport messaging. 

We can provide you with content for your website or social media feeds, keep you updated with important promotions, services and updates, and even work with you and your athletes on tailored editorial or advice content. You can also follow us on social media and share the content we post. 

To find out what we can do to support your content and communications, please email our communications team.

Subscribe to our newsletter

If your national sport organisation is bidding for, or has won, the rights to host an international event in New Zealand, it’s likely that testing (or ‘doping control’) will be required at the event. 

If you’re in the bidding process, you can talk to us before submitting your bid. We can give you advice on the type of testing needed and a cost estimate for your budget. Costs depend on the number and type of testing you need and can be a significant expense. 

For more information, please contact us. 

Prescribing a substance that’s banned in sport to an athlete can have big consequences. When you prescribe or administer medicines to an athlete, it's important to be aware what is banned in sport and whether appropriate alternatives are available. 

Check medications and methods on Global DRO

If an athlete requires a banned medication for medical reasons, they may need a Therapeutic Use Exemption to make sure they aren’t breaking anti-doping rules. 

Prescribing clinicians must complete the Therapeutic Use Exemption application form, and provide comprehensive medical notes to support the application. 

Learn about your role in Therapeutic Use Exemptions