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WADA said it had been informed by the
accredited laboratory in Cologne, Germany, that security bottles
introduced in September 2017 may potentially be susceptible to
manual opening "upon freezing" of a sample.
The bottles are used to collect and store urine and/or blood
samples when an athlete undergoes a doping control test.
"This situation, if confirmed, will raise concerns and
questions," WADA said in a statement.
Compounding the issue is the bottles' manufacturer, Berlinger
Special AG, has told WADA it was unable to replicate the issue
when the security bottles were handled per the product's
instruction, WADA said.
Reuters was unable to immediately contact the manufacturer for
comment.
Bottle security became a major concern when officials learned
athletes' analytical results were manipulated and samples
swapped at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
Russia was banned from next month's Pyeongchang Winter Olympics
after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) found evidence
of an "unprecedented systematic manipulation" of the anti-doping
system that has led to a series of suspensions.
Only those athletes cleared by the IOC will be allowed to
compete in Pyeongchang as an "Olympic Athlete from Russia".
WADA said it was following up with the Cologne Laboratory and
the manufacturer to further clarify the issue.
Two samples are taken during a doping test but generally the B
sample is frozen and only analyzed if the A sample has been
found to contain a prohibited substance, WADA said.
(Reporting by Gene Cherry in S
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