In another effort for the protection of clean sport, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is pleased to launch the ADeL for Medical Professionals course on its Anti-Doping e-Learning Platform (ADeL) today to coincide with UNESCO’s International Day of Education.
This new online course is aimed at medical professionals, which includes sports physicians or any other professional involved in the diagnosis, treatment or rehabilitation of athletes; such as, physiotherapists, general practitioners, sports nutritionists and pharmacists. Recognizing the important role they all play in protecting clean sport, the course outlines how medical professionals can operate effectively in line with the anti-doping rules; how they can support athletes in meeting their responsibilities under the World Anti-Doping Code (Code); and, therefore, how they can help prevent doping.

WADA Director General, Olivier Niggli, said: “WADA is very pleased to launch ADeL for Medical Professionals on UNESCO’S International Day of Education. Among other things, this course reaffirms education as a fundamental activity in the protection of Clean Sport. Clean Sport education plays a key role in protecting athletes, and increasing access to relevant, research-based education for all our stakeholders is one of our key priorities.”
WADA Director, Education, Amanda Hudson, added: “We are confident that this course will benefit medical professionals working with athletes, helping them understand anti-doping and how their medical practice, decision-making and advice must always support a Clean Sport ethos. Medical professionals that are educated regarding anti-doping can benefit athletes by providing them with accurate anti-doping advice and positively influencing their values and behaviors. These are core responsibilities under the Code. WADA encourages Anti-Doping Organizations to promote ADeL for Medical Professionals within their respective communities and to support their need to be educated.”
WADA has also developed a special course titled ADeL for Medical Professionals at Major Games in collaboration with the International Olympic Committee (IOC). This course, which can also be accessed on the ADeL platform, focuses on the specific knowledge required of medical professionals, such as team doctors that are attending a major sporting event, and includes guidance on managing and bringing medication to the Olympic Games as well as information on the IOC’s No-Needle Policy. Completion of the ADeL for Medical Professionals at Major Games course is a pre-requisite for team doctors registering for the upcoming Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
To complete both courses, simply register on ADeL or log in to your existing account and scroll to the Library section. The courses are mobile-friendly and can be easily accessed through smart phones or tablets. In addition, WADA has created an ADeL User Guide in order to help users navigate through the platform.
While the course is initially being launched in English, WADA will work with stakeholders around the world to translate ADeL for Medical Professionals into further languages.
For any questions or to provide feedback on these two ADeL resources, or any other ADeL resource, please direct your emails to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..