The recently 2023 IBSA World Games brought together athletes from all continents of the world, with almost 70 countries present and more than a thousand athletes competing and inspiring in 10 sports, including three Paralympics.

This event has a different profile from the others; it is considered a major event, where there is the opportunity to compete in several sports simultaneously, and IBSA is one of the few international federations that have this possibility, as it is in charge of nine sports and in partnership with others who share the same spirit and dedication to sport for blind people.

As part of all this responsibility, IBSA spared no dedication and effort to carry out the cleanest edition of the World Games, where the IBSA Anti-Doping Department worked on several fronts, from Testing to Education.

As for the Tests theme, IBSA carried out out-of-competition tests on more than 25 athletes, collecting urine and blood samples and focusing on its Target Test Groups, a group that has athletes from various regions of the world and four sports modalities. The tests in competition were more than 60 tests distributed by the IBSA modalities, seeking a fair and balanced event for all participants.

The tests were carried out in accordance with WADA and IBSA standards and procedures, always focusing on the quality of work and athlete safety. Two companies were used during the event so that all arenas were visited by work teams, and more than 33 professionals from five different countries were involved to promote clean sport.

Regarding Education, this edition was the first to carry out educational actions for all sports at the event. The IBSA Anti-Doping team was present at almost all Technical Congresses to talk to coaches about the activities that would be carried out during the event and also to provide pertinent information that could help them avoid inadvertent doping when there is no intention to perform.

#Accessibility – The women’s Blind Football national team of Argentina was one of the many teams that went to the education sessions in the IBSA Anti-Doping kiosk at the University of Birmingham during the 2023 IBSA World Games. This Argentinian team was the first in history to conquer the world title!

With the aim of reaching as many athletes as possible, an education kiosk, the IBSA Play Clean, was installed at the University of Birmingham and the Goalball Arena. IBSA is increasingly bringing athletes into a relaxed and creative educational environment, using technology and an educational team with qualified professionals. Over 200 athletes participated in this kiosk, answering questions about anti-doping with a focus on raising awareness about the risks of doping use.

“We believe in the potential of our athletes, and our role here is to protect clean and fair athletes, and for this we need to be together with them to guide them through ethical values and provide useful and necessary information for an integral career. We will be here in Birmingham every day talking and teaching them how to be a clean athlete, but we are also available to them every day of the year through other channels such as our website and app.”
Juliana Soares
Anti-Doping Education Officer

IBSA is committed to Clean Sport, and actions like this are part of a project to gradually transform the behaviour of athletes, support staff, and the internal technical team. All working together for Clean Sport.