The final in this series of Junior Athletes Anti-Doping Education Workshops, was held at the Tropical Lagoon Resort in Portland on Wednesday, March 19 and targeted individuals from the regions of St. Ann, St. Mary and Portland. The workshops were organised by the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission (JADCO) in collaboration with the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA).
The workshops catered to all categories of secondary school athletes, athlete support personnel and key technical administrative staff. Speaking at the workshop, Kadeja Campbell, a junior athlete from Steer Town Academy in St. Ann said “I have benefited from this workshop because I am now more aware of the Anti-Doping Rule Violations. I have also learnt that as an athlete you are responsible for your actions, not your parents, teachers or coaches.”
Also speaking at the event, Valrick Henningham, Head of Department, Physical Education, St. Mary Technical High said “This workshop is extremely important. It is educating the junior athletes about the world of Anti-Doping and the strict liability rule. It makes them aware of the do’s and don’ts of Anti-Doping.” He further added, “I benefited significantly from listening to JADCO’s presentation on The Doping Control Process and I am now in a position where I can share the information I learnt and disseminate the brochures that we received from JADCO.”
The workshop featured talks from Nadia Vassell, Director, Technical Services, JADCO, Marcia Swyer-Forbes, Chairperson for the Education Committee, JAAA and Dr. Paula Dawson, Medical Practitioner. As a result of the workshop, participants were able to increase their knowledge of the role of JADCO, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the Jamaica Anti-Doping Programme. They were also informed of the Doping Control Process, banned substances and the role of support staff.
JADCO will continue the dialogue with the junior athletes, as they will set up a booth at the ISSA Boys and Girls Athletic Championships, which will be held from March 25-29, 2014 at the National Stadium.
JADCO was formally established with the passage of the Anti-Doping in Sport Act of 2008, as the national anti-doping organisation. JADCO’s mandate is to foster a doping-free environment in Jamaica that promotes the ethics and spirit of sport and deters the use of banned doping practices in sport through education, testing, advocacy and programme coordination.
For further news, please contact us here.
