Athlete Perceptions Survey
In an ongoing effort to best serve and protect clean athletes, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) partnered with The Center for Athlete Well-being and Prevention Strategies, University of North Carolina Greensboro to survey USADA testing pool athletes to better understand their perceptions of doping and get their feedback on anti-doping efforts. Sent to elite athletes in the USADA testing pools, the 55-question survey was anonymously completed by 994 athletes across 76 sports in 2022.
The survey asked for athlete perceptions on 10 key topics, including athlete wellbeing, deterrents to performance-enhancing drug use, and whistleblowing. Key findings are presented in the graphics below:
The results have provided USADA with a high quality and rich dataset that’s being used to shape operational improvements and future strategy reflecting the beliefs and interests of athletes. USADA was able to identify a number of ways that it could immediately operationalize feedback from athlete respondents, such as providing further education around how tips are processed once submitted to the Play Clean Tip Center. Stakeholders also identified opportunities for the findings to inform future strategy, for example through updates to athlete technology tools, education on the impact of scientific advancements in detection methods, and advocacy around athlete rights.