adminNORTH CAROLINA. — Whistle-blower Vitaly Stepanov said on Monday he nearly aborted his plan to expose widespread doping in Russian athletics when the World Anti-Doping Agency was slow to act on information he provided them.
Stepanov, who previously worked for Russia’s anti-doping agency, said he second-guessed himself countless times during a three-year stretch where information he fed to WADA did not lead to action.
“I was falling asleep and telling myself I am an idiot,” Stepanov said in a telephone interview. “That was probably my thought a lot of times. Especially after each major competition that was my thought. What am I doing?”
Stepanov, who had over 200 email exchanges with WADA starting in 2010, provided evidence for a German television documentary called “Top Secret Doping: How Russia Makes Its Winners” that led to the establishment of a WADA independent commission last year. — Reuters.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter