At a Senate Commerce subcommittee hearing, Chair Marsha Blackburn and witnesses pressed the World Anti‑Doping Agency (WADA) for answers about a report that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for the banned drug trimetazidine before the Tokyo Olympics and were nevertheless allowed to compete.

The hearing focused on accountability and reform. Blackburn said, “My message remains the same. My colleagues and I will not be threatened or silenced for promoting fair play and advocating for clean sport.” Witnesses called for independent audits of WADA, stronger conflict‑of‑interest protections in WADA leadership, and continued U.S. oversight of international anti‑doping governance.

Why it matters: The United States is the largest public funder of WADA and is hosting or co‑hosting major international events in the coming decade, including the 2026 FIFA World Cup and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic and Paralympic Games. Committee members and witnesses said that low confidence in WADA’s process threatens the integrity of competition on U.S. soil and internationally.

Travis Tygart, chief executive officer of the U.S. Anti‑Doping Agency (USADA), told the subcommittee that 96 medals across the 2021 and 2024 Olympic Games were “potentially impacted” by the matter. Tygart said the United States has withheld $3,600,000 in dues to WADA and urged the agency to disclose the full file on the Chinese cases, subject itself to independent audit, and install truly independent executive leadership.

Dr. Rahul Gupta, former director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, repeated that view and urged congressional action tying U.S. funding to measurable reforms. “This is not about medals. It’s about meaning,” Gupta said, arguing for permanent ONDCP authority to oversee conditional U.S. payments to WADA and for expanded diplomatic and enforcement measures.

Katie McLaughlin, a U.S. Olympic swimmer and silver medalist, described being tested many times as an athlete and said the apparent failure to hold all competitors to the same standard was “devastating.” “To me, competing clean wasn’t just a rule, it was a responsibility,” McLaughlin said.

Professor Dionne Koehler, co‑chair of the bipartisan Commission on the State of the U.S. Olympics and Paralympics, reviewed U.S. leadership on anti‑doping policy, citing the International Convention Against Doping in Sport and the World Anti‑Doping Code as frameworks the United States helped establish. Koehler said USADA is broadly trusted domestically but that WADA’s structure and ties to sport governance undermine its independence and transparency.

Specific proposals discussed in the hearing included:
- Requiring WADA to disclose the full record and investigative materials for the cases involving the 23 Chinese swimmers and the agency’s handling of them.
- An independent audit or compliance review of WADA’s decision‑making and enforcement practices.
- Stronger conflict‑of‑interest protections and the installation of truly independent WADA leadership (president and vice president), separate from sport governing bodies.
- Continued withholding of U.S. dues until agreed reforms are implemented and congressional legislation to make ONDCP’s oversight authority permanent.

Committee members and witnesses emphasized that even if contamination were raised as an explanation in some cases, rules governing disclosure and disqualification were not followed, according to testimony. Tygart described a scientific plausibility concern expressed in committee questioning, including his statement that the contamination explanation would require implausible levels of exposure to produce the test results cited.

This hearing produced no binding changes to WADA policy; lawmakers said Congress may pursue legislation now pending before the committee to tie U.S. support to demonstrable reforms. The subcommittee set deadlines for follow‑up: senators on the committee have until the close of business on June 24 to submit questions for the record, and witnesses have until July 8 to file their responses.