Raphael Netz: "I Have Learned My Lesson"

Dressage

Germany

For German Raphael Netz the 2024 Olympic Games were suddenly very close when first reserve rider Ingrid Klimke withdrew an injured Franziskus.

However, the German Olympic Sports Committee (DOSB) rejected him as he had not properly filled out his whereabouts for human doping testing on the ADAMS app.

"Lesson Learned"

The evening after the news broke, Raphael reached out to Eurodressage.

"Unfortunately I am not listed in the ADAMS system of the WADA," he told Eurodressage. "I have received my log-in link two weeks ago. I had struggle to log in and failed to fix it in that time. It is my own fault but I have learned my lesson."

Human Anti-Doping

The FEI is part of a collaborative, worldwide movement for doping-free sport led by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The FEI has developed Anti-Doping Rules for Human Athletes (ADRHA) and for dressage any Athlete who is ranked in the top 300 of the FEI Dressage World Rankings falls under ADRHA. Riders need to begin filling out their whereabouts when they are top 300 ranked "applicable on 1 January for the year considered."

Athletes can be tested at events or out of competition. All testing is based on WADA’s International Standard for Testing & Investigations.

Athletes from target groups are required to communicate their locations in the ADAMS app and make themselves available to be subject to (potentially unannounced) anti-doping controls.

Netz is currently ranked 20th on the FEI World Rider Ranking. Last month he ranked 14th. Raphael began competing as a senior not in January 2023 but in March 2023 and was ranked 19th by the end of December 2023. He started falling under the ADRHA as of January 2024 and seemingly should have been filling out his whereabouts as of then.

Consequences

Evading sample collection, or refusing or failing to submit to sample collection without compelling justification after notification by a duly authorized person can lead to suspension if any combination of three (3) missed tests and/or filing failures happened within a twelve month period.

This is how French team rider Morgan Barbançon saw her Olympic dream to ride in Paris go up in smoke.

Morgan failed three times to upload her whereabouts. Her lawyer claimed she was "victim of malfunctions in the ADAMS software, preventing her from correctly entering her location data." CAS rejected this argument and suspended her for 18 months.

ADAMS System

Raphael Netz told Eurodressage he was personally tested at the 2024 World Cup Finals in Riyadh. He admitted that he struggled with the ADAMS system. As he did not solve the problem in time the DOSB stopped him from going to Paris.

"I was told that this registration process was meant to happen in January already," Raphael told Eurodressage. "But for some unknown reasons it didn't happen. I wasn't aware of that. It's my first time as a senior and nobody told me that. And then when my log-in information came two weeks ago it just didn't work. I still can't get in."

In Germany riders are assisted by the German Federation (NF) in case they need help with the system. They also receive reminder emails when they forget to fill out data in the app.

Netz explained that he did not know the ADAMS app was mandatory. He was led to believe it only mattered for German A-squad riders.

"As i know it only the people from the A-squad of a country need to do it," he said. "I am only in the B-squad. I was nominated in the B-squad after Riyadh (April 2024)."