Russian Doping Whistleblower Claims E-Mail Hacked to Uncover Whereabouts

E-mail account of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) Russian informant Yulia Stepanova was hacked, followed a few hours later by a hack of her ADAMS (Anti-Doping Administration and Management System) account, according to media reports.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) Russian informant Yuliya Stepanova’s e-mail and ADAMS (Anti-Doping Administration and Management System) account were hacked to locate her, media reported Saturday, citing her representative’s e-mail.

On Monday, Stepanova and her husband planned to make an announcement ahead of the women’s 800m race at the Rio Olympics, from which the Russian runner had been banned to participate by the International Olympic Committee.

"Yuliya's e-mail account was hacked, followed a few hours later by a hack of her ADAMS account, i.e. her anti-doping control account at WADA,'' the e-mail sent to the ESPN broadcaster said.

WADA confirmed that her account was the only athlete account that was hacked proving that someone had attempted to uncover her undisclosed location in the United States, Stepanova's representative added.

Stepanova revealed information about alleged doping abuse and corruption in Russian sports in the Germany television broadcaster ARD's film titled "The Doping Secret: How Russia Creates Champions," released in late 2014.

The Russian runner, who had left Russia with her family, was also a key witness in the WADA investigation into allegations that dozens of Russian athletes used performance-enhancing drugs at the 2014 Winter Olympics. WADA accused Russia of running a state-wide doping program and recommended to ban the team from the 2016 Olympic Games.