Thursday June 13 will not only see the climax of the pool stages at the IRB Junior World Championship in France, it has also been designated Keep Rugby Clean Day.
The campaign to promote anti-doping has been backed by top players including British and Irish Lions Captain Sam Warburton, Argentine Captain Felipe Contepomi, France’s Vincent Clerc, Australian flanker David Pocock as well as Cecil Afrika and Bryan Habana from South Africa.
Keep Rugby Clean day coincides with the official launch of a comprehensive E-learning programme that will be rolled out on www.keeprugbyclean.com. The multi-language site is an extensive learning tool that allows players, coaches, management and even parents to learn about the dangers of doping.
The IRB Junior World Championship plays a key role in preparing aspiring stars of the Game for the rigours of Test Rugby and Anti-Doping education is an essential element in that process. The IRB operates a zero-tolerance policy to drug cheats in sport, in partnership with the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA).
Keep Rugby Clean Ambassador Sam Warburton, who is currently leading the British and Irish Lions in Australia, explained why he is supporting the fight to Keep Rugby Clean.
“It’s something I feel very strongly about. I think all top players got to where they are because they’ve been dedicated and honest, and they haven’t felt the need to cheat.”
“It’s so much more satisfying when you do make it to the top without doping. Rugby has got such a clean record now we really got to work hard to keep it going,” said the Welshman.
Along with Warburton, Australian flanker David Pocock captained his country during the IRB Junior World Championship in 2008, before going on to lead the Wallabies at Test level.
“Keeping Rugby clean is important for the health of athletes and to ensure it is a level playing field for all players. Having come through the Under 20’s tournament, I think education is the key and it is every Rugby player’s responsibility to help keep doping out of the Game,” said Pocock.
With Rugby’s continued expansion and participation numbers at unprecedented levels, the IRB undertook 1,542 tests (512 In Competition and 1,030 Out of Competition) across Fifteens and Sevens, in every continent in 2012.
Argentinian Captain Felipe Contepomi says education is key to the Keep Rugby Clean campaign.
“I think it’s crucial for the game. When you are a competitor you want to make sure you are competing against people that are clean and celebrate all the skills and everything in the game in a good way. It’s very important and education for me is the crucial part of keeping rugby clean.”
As part of the IRB’s outreach Anti-Doping education programme all players at #JWC2013 have benefitted from a team-based education session with an IRB experts explaining the dangers of doping.
IRB Anti-Doping Manager for Testing and Education, Ilaria Baudo, said: “The feedback from players and coaches during this year’s IRB Junior World Championship has been really positive.
It’s encouraging to hear these young players ask questions about anti-doping during the outreach sessions, and questions about how they can ensure a clean and healthy future in the sport they love.”
“Players need to understand from an early age the dangers and consequences of doping, the pitfalls concerning nutritional supplement use and how to maintain a healthy and clean approach to sports nutrition and Keep Rugby Clean Day helps promote those values.”
On the field, match day three of the IRB Junior World Championship 2013 is set to kick off later, with some mouth-watering encounters as top teams battle it out for a place at the Semi-Finals in Vannes on June 18.
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You can stay in touch with all the news from the JWC at www.irb.com/jwc and the fully interactive live tournament updates on Twitter at @irbjuniors or via Facebook at www.facebook.com/irbjuniorworldrugby.
