RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Geolocalisation of athletes for out-of-competition drug testing: ethical considerations. Position statement by the WADA Ethics Panel JF British Journal of Sports Medicine JO Br J Sports Med FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine SP 456 OP 459 DO 10.1136/bjsports-2017-098299 VO 52 IS 7 A1 Pascal Borry A1 Timothy Caulfield A1 Xavier Estivill A1 Sigmund Loland A1 Michael McNamee A1 Bartha Maria Knoppers A1 , YR 2018 UL http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/52/7/456.abstract AB Through the widespread availability of location-identifying devices, geolocalisation could potentially be used to place athletes during out-of-competition testing. In light of this debate, the WADA Ethics Panel formulated the following questions: (1) should WADA and/or other sponsors consider funding such geolocalisation research projects?, (2) if successful, could they be proposed to athletes as a complementary device to Anti-Doping Administration and Management System to help geolocalisation and reduce the risk of missed tests? and (3) should such devices be offered on a voluntary basis, or is it conceivable that they would be made mandatory for all athletes in registered testing pools? In this position paper, the WADA Ethics Panel concludes that the use of geolocalisation could be useful in a research setting with the goal of understanding associations between genotype, phenotype and environment; however, it recognises that the use of geolocalisation as part of or as replacement of whereabouts rules is replete with ethical concerns. While benefits remain largely hypothetical and minimal, the potential invasion of privacy and the data security threats are real. Considering the impact on privacy, data security issues, the societal ramifications of offering such services and various pragmatic considerations, the WADA Ethics Panel concludes that at this time, the use of geolocalisation should neither be mandated as a tool for disclosing whereabouts nor implemented on a voluntary basis.