The Polish Anti-Doping Agency (POLADA) reported on Wednesday that it had been the victim of a cyberattack, in which false data of positive tests of a number of athletes was leaked.
Many of Poland’s most prominent athletes were named in the alleged leaks, including tennis world number one Iga Swiatek and Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski, who has been one of Europe’s top footballers for more than a decade.
The alleged leaks were then shared on social media before being described as “fake” by POLADA.
A statement from the agency on X, formerly Twitter, in response to a now-deleted tweet outlining the allegations, said: “The information in this post about Polish athletes is fake.
“All these messages are intended to discredit Polish athletes, who do not deserve it because they compete cleanly. None of these athletes were positive and none of the data presented corresponds to the doping controls that were carried out.”
Information presented in this message about Polish athletes is fake. All these messages are meant to discredit Polish athletes, who do not deserve it because they compete cleanly. None of these athletes were positive and none of the presented data corresponds to the doping controls that were carried out.
— Polska Agencja Antydopingowa (@POLADA_official) August 14, 2024
The International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA), the authority that deals with doping in tennis, has announced this. The Athletics that their files contained no evidence of adverse findings for Swiatek.
The agency’s documents include the period during which Swiatek allegedly tested positive, even though the fight against doping fell under the jurisdiction of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) at the time.
In a subsequent tweet, POLADA wrote: “In connection with the hack attack, we inform you that data is being used by cybercriminals for various purposes, including public disinformation.
“Fake news discrediting Polish athletes has appeared in the public domain. Please do not duplicate them.
“None of the athletes named will achieve a positive result and none of the terms presented correspond to anti-doping controls performed.”
— Polska Agencja Antydopingowa (@POLADA_official) August 14, 2024
The Swiatek camp referred to POLADA’s statements when asked for comment.
POLADA is the National Anti-Doping Organisation (NADO) recognised by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for Poland.
WADA is responsible for coordinating anti-doping rules and policies for all sports, including tennis and football.
Representatives of Lewandowski have also been asked for comment.
(Dimitar Dilkoff/AFP via Getty Images)
