WADA provides update on ‘Operation Obsidian’ investigation of Georgian rugby

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) welcomes the announcement today by World Rugby that it has completed the results management process in confirming anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs) against six players and one member of the athlete support personnel from the Georgia national rugby union team.

Launched in 2023, Operation Obsidian investigated claims that players were engaging in sample substitution, a prohibited method that contravenes Article 2.2 of the World Anti-Doping Code (Code). The investigation, whose report was published in March 2026, revealed five instances where sample substitution occurred, also finding that advance notice of testing was being given to players from the Georgia national rugby union team, with the involvement of employees of the Georgian Anti-Doping Agency (GADA). It also determined that doping control officers were not observing athletes notified for doping control and not witnessing urine passing, which are clear non-conformities under the rules.

WADA President, Witold Bańka, said: “WADA welcomes the latest work concluded by World Rugby in what is a scandal for Georgian sport. The suspensions these individuals have received are significant and send a strong message to others who may be tempted to try and cheat the system. We and our anti-doping partners will continue to defend the integrity of sport by conducting diligent investigations and prosecuting violations.”

Separate to World Rugby’s conclusion of the results management in these cases, WADA has been in communication with the Government of Georgia to request that it takes the necessary steps to restore the confidence of WADA and the anti-doping community. In response, the government has withdrawn its recognition of GADA and is working closely with WADA to establish in a timely manner a new National Anti-Doping Organization with entirely different personnel to those in GADA. 

WADA Director, Intelligence and Investigations, Günter Younger, said: “We are now in the next phase of this investigation as we assess whether the issues in Georgian rugby go beyond that of one sport. Since WADA announced the findings of Operation Obsidian in March, we have been in communication with the Government of Georgia to ensure it makes the changes necessary to restore our confidence in that country’s anti-doping program.”

As part of its follow-up investigation, WADA extracted samples collected from athletes of other sports in Georgia. An expert review of the Athlete Biological Passports (ABPs) related to these samples is ongoing. If samples are flagged as suspicious for sample substitution, Operation Obsidian will inform the relevant Anti-Doping Organizations and guide them through the DNA analysis and comparison process. To that end, WADA is developing a dedicated guideline to investigate cases of sample substitution.

In 2020, WADA published its findings from Operation Arrow, a covert investigation into the practice of urine substitution at the point of collection in the sport of weightlifting, which had been triggered through use of the ABP program. The investigation led to the development of a new investigative process for detecting this prohibited method.