UTMB Group to invest €100,000 in drug testing in 2024

UTMB Group, one of the partner organizations behind many of the largest and most well-known ultra and trail races, has announced a significant expansion of its anti-doping efforts. Partnering with the International Testing Agency (ITA) and independent anti-doping organizations, UTMB is committing at least €100,000 this year to bolster its anti-doping initiatives. This comprehensive approach includes creating new anti-doping policies, enhancing testing procedures and athlete education programs.

New anti-doping policies aligned with WADA

UTMB Group is introducing a detailed set of anti-doping rules for the UTMB World Series. These rules have been developed with the assistance of the ITA and are designed to align with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) standards, which govern doping regulations in road and track athletics. The new policies clearly define the scope of their application, list prohibited substances, outline testing procedures and detail the consequences of doping violations. This initiative aims to provide transparency and a reliable regulatory framework for all participants, something that has been conspicuously lacking in the ultra-trail world.

Great work @protrailrunner @UTMBWorldSeries @UTMBMontBlanc 👏👏! #cleansport https://t.co/ttzWujli6r

— Camille Herron 🦸‍♀️ (@runcamille) May 21, 2024

Educational training programs

UTMB Group has launched an extensive new training program for elite athletes and their managers This program, supported by the ITA, includes free webinars that have been made available to 1,400 athletes. The training sessions focus on promoting clean sport practices, understanding the new anti-doping rules and supporting athletes in maintaining ethical standards. UTMB CEO Frédéric Lenart emphasized the organization’s commitment to these efforts in a press release: “The commitments we made in 2023 were necessary and welcomed by the trail running community: we’re stepping them up this year.”

Collaboration with ITA for random testing

Continuing its partnership with the ITA, UTMB Group will conduct around 100 random drug tests across the entire UTMB World Series circuit in 2024. (The ITA, established in 2018, is known for managing anti-doping programs for more than 60 international sports federations and major events, including the Olympics.) This collaboration aims to ensure rigorous and unbiased testing intended to help maintain the integrity of ultra-trail competition. Despite her recent separation with UTMB in the role of commentator, Corrine Malcolm, who serves as a board member of the Pro Trail Runners Association (PTRA), praised the initiative, saying, “The anti-doping testing and framework that you’ll see implemented as in-competition controls as part of the UTMB World Series this year is more than a year in the making. We are incredibly happy to be working with UTMB Group and the ITA to take this first step towards safe and fair sport in trail and ultrarunning.”

UTMB’s renewed anti-doping efforts echo the new policies Western States 100 released earlier this year, when they revealed a new partnership with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), unrolling new regulations around anti-doping and reaffirming the race’s “continuing commitment to clean sport,” as stated on their website.

Western States unveils new anti-doping policy

Not without flaws

These commitments to reduce doping in ultrarunning are only a start, according to some. Respected coach and ultrarunner Jason Koop explained in Ultrarunning Magazine that trail and ultrarunning have no overarching governing body that specifies who needs to be tested. “UTMB states that all athletes are subject to both in-competition and out-of-competition testing, but there is no clarity on who performs those tests, how they are going to find any of the athletes for out-of-competition testing or if it’s just some vague threat to cover all the bases,” he says. “Similarly, the Western States Endurance Run will issue an athlete a lifetime ban from the race if they have previously served a ban in any sport from any point in time.”

Despite the need for improvement, Koop and others reiterate that these efforts are a positive step toward a more unified anti-doping system within the realm of trail and ultrarunning. “We recognize that in-competition controls are just one of many steps needed, and will continue to work with UTMB Group and the ITA to carry out athlete, team, and race personnel education,” says Malcolm. Koop emphasizes the need for athletes, race directors and coaches to begin by educating themselves using tools like the USADA’s Anti-doping 101 and the WADA-Prohibited List and Monitoring Program.