The athlete biological passport: ticket to a fair commonwealth games

Abstract

In summer 2014, the world watched as Glasgow hosted the 2014 Commonwealth Games and athletes pushed the boundaries of human performance. Sport has developed into a multi-billion pound industry leading to the development of a ‘win at any cost’ mentality in some individuals. The abuse of performance-enhancing drugs has developed into a sophisticated arms race between those unfairly enhancing performance and those wishing to preserve the dignity of sport and the health of the competitors. The challenge for the Commonwealth games organising committee was to ensure that competition remained fair and that athletes were kept safe. The athlete biological passport is a system implemented by the World Anti-Doping Agency directed towards enhancing the identification of those athletes accountable for the misuse of performance-enhancing substances. This article exemplifies which drugs are currently being exploited and how the athlete biological passport has evolved to improve their detection.