IOC medical commission chairman Prince Alexandre de Merode said labs in Germany, Norway, Switzerland, Spain, South Korea and Canada are already using spectrometers. Other labs have six months to install and start using the machines, or else lose their IOC accreditation, de Merode said. In addition, federations will be told to use the same procedures and material for the tests. De Merode briefed the executive board on his ideas for a more flexible system of doping sanctions that would bring penalties in line with national and European laws. Citing recent decisions by the European Court of Justice, de Merode said athletes are considered workers and any ban can be ruled an infringement of their right to pursue their trade.
Athletes also have rights.
We must adapt our rules to this. Fixed sanctions are wrong. They must be adapted to the gravity of the infraction. He suggested having sanctions that allow athletes to continue competing on a national level, plus fines and a probationary period of regular drug testing.