Sports Officials Step Up Fight Against Drugs

An Olympic anti-doping charter, aimed at involving governments in the fight on drug use in sports, was approved Thursday by sports officials from more than 70 nations.

The charter, which places responsibility for combatting drug use with domestic sports authorities, governments and international sports federations, is a procedural document and a moral statement of values.

“The charter spells out very clearly the intentions of governments in all countries that are represented here in terms of their attempts to stamp out this enormous problem,” said Len Derkach, who headed the Canadian delegation at the UNESCO-sponsored conference at Moscow.

Canada initiated the creation of the document.