Stepanova, an 800 and 1,500 meters distance runner, was banned herself from participating in Rio after getting caught doping in 2013.
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RIO DE JANEIRO Aug 13 Russian whistleblower Yulia Stepanova’s electronic account at the World Anti-Doping Agency has been illegally accessed, WADA said on Saturday.
“Yuliya’s e-mail account was hacked, followed a few hours later by a hack of her ADAMS (Anti-Doping Administration and Management System) account, i.e. her anti-doping control account at WADA, ” the email said.
The Stepanovs fled Russia in advance of a November 2014 German television documentary that used their secretly recorded footage and other information to expose extensive organized doping in Russian track and field.
Athletes use the database to enter so-called “whereabouts” information which they are obliged to provide in order to make themselves available for drug testing outside competitions.
Stepanova and her husband, Vitaly, were the informers who detailed a state-run doping system in Russian Federation that led to the ouster of the country’s athletes from the Olympic track meet.
“If something happens to us, you should know it is not an accident. There we would feel unsafe”. At the same time, we realise that if somebody really wanted to do something to us, they would probably succeed.
Ed Macnair, CEO of cloud security specialists CensorNet, told IT Pro: “It’s good to see Wada was monitoring the account of an athlete in such a sensitive position, locking it down upon discovering the bogus login”.
“We have no regrets, and the story got a lot bigger than we could ever imagine”, Stepanov said. “Because if someone wanted to hurt us, I think it would be very easy to do it there. So, perhaps it’s all for the best”.
The Russian whistleblowers, whose revelations ignited the scandal that has engulfed their country’s sporting establishment, say their safety concerns have deepened after an online security breach by someone they suspect may be trying to track their movements.
“Once again, the International Olympic Committee or Thomas Bach do not try to understand our situation clearly – they simply take a position that’s going to be of their greatest benefit”.
“They never tried to understand our situation”, Stepanova said.
“However, I decided I know longer want to be part of this and I told the truth”. She took another path, by competing honestly and respecting competitors.
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However, yesterday Stepanova’s official WADA account was hacked.
