Les présidents de l'AMA et de World Athletics célèbrent le succès de l'opération LIMS lors des Championnats du monde d'athlétisme en salle 2026.

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Today, the President of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), Witold Bańka, was in Toruń, Poland, and met with the President of World Athletics, Sebastian Coe, on the sidelines of the 2026 World Indoor Athletics Championships. The championships are taking place at the Kujawsko-Pomorska Arena in Toruń, and welcome approximately 670 athletes, representing more than 110 countries competing across 27 disciplines. 

Presidents Bańka and Coe met to discuss the strong and ongoing collaboration between WADA and World Athletics, including the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU). In particular, they focused on the successful conclusion of athletics cases from the WADA-led Operation LIMS investigation, which was based on data and samples that were successfully retrieved from the Laboratory Information Management System of the Moscow Anti-Doping Laboratory in 2019. A total of 66 cases in athletics were successfully sanctioned following the diligent efforts of the AIU in collaboration with WADA. In total, across all sports, Operation LIMS has led directly to 298 sanctions against athletes who were part of Russia’s institutionalized doping scheme.  

The two Presidents also discussed the importance of further strengthening the global anti-doping system, the implementation of the 2027 World Anti-Doping Code, and a shared objective of advancing anti-doping research. 

Mr. Bańka said: “It was a pleasure to spend time with President Sebastian Coe during such a marquee event as the 2026 World Indoor Athletics Championships. Of course, as a Pole and a former sprinter, it is particularly thrilling for me to be here to watch the exciting action unfold. Attending big sporting events like this one is a reminder of why we dedicate ourselves to the promotion of clean sport and to the protection of the athletes, who work so hard to qualify and compete at this level.  

“World Athletics and the AIU are strong partners for WADA. The anti-doping work being done by AIU is commendable – it deals with a high volume of cases and is certainly one of the best ADOs in terms of quality of work. Looking ahead, WADA will continue to rely on their expertise and experience to play a leading role in the implementation of the updated World Anti-Doping Code and International Standards. President Coe has been a staunch advocate for the protection of clean sport throughout his presidency, and we look forward to continued collaboration with World Athletics and the AIU for many years to come.” 

Mr. Coe said: “The outcomes of the decade-long LIMS investigation in our sport show what can be achieved through genuine collaboration in the anti-doping movement, so it is important that all sports and all factions are united in the global anti-doping movement for the good of sport worldwide. 

“Collectively we can do more to ensure we are catching intentional cheats. We have great programmes in place, but we must continue building and expanding our efforts in investigations, scientific research and education. 

“We must all do better to support our clean athletes by catching the dirty ones, especially those at the pinnacle of sport. So, let's resolve to strengthen the global anti-doping system and move past compliance towards a collective pursuit of excellence, as we strive for cleaner, fairer and more credible sport.” 

While in Toruń, President Bańka and WADA’s Director, Office of the President and Institutional Relations, Rafal Piechota, held a series of bilateral meetings with other stakeholders.