WADA Athlete Council connects with athletes during fourth International Paralympic Committee Athletes’ Forum

This week, the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA’s) Athlete Council was in Duisburg, Germany for the fourth edition of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Athletes’ Forum, which took place 24-26 June. 

The Forum, which hosted 75 athlete commission representatives from across the Paralympic Movement, provides an important platform for participants to discuss key issues, share experiences and connect with their counterparts in their various organizations from around the world. The Forum also coincided with the inauguration of the new IPC Campus in Bonn. 

WADA Athlete Council member and World ParaVolley Athlete Representative Ivan Ćosić, was on hand to engage with participants.  He also delivered a joint presentation with the IPC’s Anti-Doping Unit and Anna Thorstenson, the Athletes' Anti-Doping Ombuds, who was on site to promote the Ombuds and engage with athletes in attendance.  

The hour-long presentation focused on a number of anti-doping topics, athlete initiatives and WADA’s priorities in the lead-up to the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games.  

Mr. Ćosić said: “WADA’s Athlete Council thanks the International Paralympic Committee for the invitation to participate in this year’s Athletes’ Forum. I would personally like to thank the IPC’s Anti-Doping Unit for their cooperation in delivering our joint presentation, which focused on matters specifically related to para-athletes. We had productive discussions with the athletes in attendance and appreciated their willingness to share their experiences and ideas with us. We look forward to taking what we learned from the Forum and factoring the outcomes into existing or future athlete-centered initiatives.” 

IPC Athletes’ Council Chair Vladyslava Kravchenko said: “The International Paralympic Committee is pleased to have had the opportunity to welcome a member from of WADA’s Athlete Council, Ivan Ćosić, to this year’s IPC Athletes’ Forum. Anti-doping is an important subject to our representatives, and they certainly benefited from listening to and connecting with Ivan and Anna. WADA’s Athlete Council plays a key role in representing Para athletes when it comes to accessibility and other key anti-doping issues, and its commitment to ensuring that international Para athletes are heard is much appreciated. We are eager to continue to build on what was achieved this week in the leadup to the upcoming Winter Games and beyond.”  

During the Forum, there was a WADA-IPC branded athlete engagement booth, which will be left behind as a legacy for future IPC events; and Play True T-shirts and hats were handed out to participants in attendance.