1) A FIRST INTERNATIONAL USE FOR THE PROGRAM AFT
 
The new platform of the program Athletes For Transparency (AFT), with all its features back-office, is now operational. It allows athletes of all nationalitées to join the program AFT but more importantly to realize analysis throughout the globe. 

The athlete has just to visit a laboratory of his choice with its mobile phone and his passport. The SMS has sent an identification code used by the laboratory to conduct the analysis. The number and photograph of the passport are compared by the laboratory with the encrypted elements contained on the platform. A multiple biological phenotype can complete the identification procedure.

The first international request for analysis was sent to Germany before the next testing in other European countries and United States in September.
 
 
2) A FIRST FOR A SPORT ORGANIZATION 

The program AFT was initiated in 2004 to provide a priority means of action for athletes wishing to display greater transparency in their practice. However from the outset, the involvement of sports events organizers and sponsors is an essential factor of an overall success. 

On a request from organizers of the Ultra Trail du Mont-Blanc (one of the most important ultra-trail in the world), a preventive antidoping action has been put in place over the period of August 2008 by the Association AFT in collaboration with the Association "Vivre Sport".


This preventive doping action had consisted firstly to a simple reminder on antdoping rules but had also integrated on a voluntary basis, a declarative procedure for TUE (Therapeutic Use Exemption) and the achievements of blood and / or hair samples . The principle adopted for these samples was as follows:

a) Provide to the athlete, on the basis of a single blood test, information relating to its haematological profile under policies of "no start rules" used by the FIS (International Ski Federation), the ISU (International Skating Union ) and the UCI (International Cycling Union).

b) Test match between TUE eventually declared or not and the presence or absence of beta2 agonists and glucocorticoid in hair analysis.

A total of 26 blood samples and / or hair have been made and analyzed. We wish to thank the Association "Vivre Sport" with whom we have worked together in this action and show our deep respect for this choice of the UTMB Organizers and medical committee of the event, not always easy and source of additional work. 
 
 
3) A WORLD FIRST  FOR THE MODULE SAMM (Sampling and Analysis Management Module)

Born into a research sponsored by the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency), in conjunction with a technical feasibility study related to the development of biological passport of the athlete (the passport in place at the UCI), SAMM aims to improve the efficiency of sampling managment while reducing costs. 

The French National AntiDoping Organization (AFLD) should be the first user of SAMM during a test phase from 01 November 2008 if validation of software security policy is fine. 

We continue our contacts with the German NADO and have started contact with:

    - UK Sport (English NADO)

    - USADA (U.S. NADO)

    - UCI

    - IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations)
 
 
4) ACCEPTED ARTICLE IN AN INTERNATIONAL REVUE

The article "Study of a new indirect method based on absolute norms of variation to detect autologous blood transfusion" SALLET Pierre, MORNEX René Brunet-GUEDJ BAVEREL Elisabeth and Gabriel, has been accepted in the International Journal of Hematology.

The findings of this article offer simple results to apply to the policy of "no start rules" but can also be used as part of another simple statistical treatment of data from the biological passport .


We wanted to than again our partners,  Rhone-Alpes, the General Council of the Drome and the World Anti-Doping Agency but also MIPRA (Public Offices Mission in the Rhone-Alpes), without whom all these developments would not have been possible.


Best regards
Program AFT Team