Over 370 secondary school student athletes and support personnel from across the island received education on anti-doping during the 2016 series of the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission’s (JADCO) Junior Athletes Anti-Doping Education Workshops, which concluded at the Jamaica Conference Centre (JCC) in Kingston on Wednesday, November 2, 2016.

At the workshops, participants received values-based education and were involved in discussions focused on the functions and responsibilities of JADCO and the doping control process.

Medical practitioners, Dr Monique Kildare, Dr Lincoln Cox, Dr Tanya Hamilton and Dr Kerone Wint also delivered presentations on the health consequences of doping.

The final workshop held in Kingston catered to athletes and support personnel from schools in Kingston and St Andrew, St Catherine and St Thomas.

Speaking at the workshop in Kingston, student athlete Asanya Cunningham of Yallahs High School in St Thomas said, “The workshop was very interesting. As a netballer and track athlete, I learned that in the future, if I become a professional, I will have to consult with my doctor or pharmacist about drugs that are found on the prohibited list. And when being tested, we must not tamper with the doping equipment. It was a lot of valuable information.”

Mark Barton, track coach at Jamaica College in Kingston, said “I am happy that my students are now familiar with the side effects of doping and the sample-collection process. The demonstration allowed my students to see why the procedure is necessary and why they should release their inhibitions and comply.”

The commission also used the workshops to launch the 2016 JADCO Poster Competition for secondary school students. They will be required to design a poster for JADCO under the theme ‘No Dope to Cope’. The winner and runners-up will be rewarded with cash and other prizes and the deadline for entries is January 20, 2017.

The first workshop in the series was held at the Golf View Hotel in Manchester on October 12, 2016 and catered to athletes and support personnel from schools in Clarendon, Manchester and St Elizabeth. Following this, workshops were held at The Wexford Hotel in St James on Wednesday, October 19 for athletes and support personnel from schools in Westmoreland, Hanover, St James and sections of Trelawny, and at The Cardiff Hotel and Spa in St Ann on Wednesday, October 26 for athletes and support personnel in St Ann, St Mary, Portland and sections of Trelawny.

JADCO will host its third annual Senior Athletes Anti-Doping Education Workshop today at the Liguanea Club in New Kingston.