After three days of speeches and soundbites at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) conference in Switzerland, officials were unable to find a consensus on punishing competitors equally, whatever the sport.
In a two-page declaration put forward on the final day of the most important drugs conference in sporting history, the leaders agreed to set up a new drug-testing agency.
They said that the minimum required sanction for a first positive test for serious drugs like steroids and human growth hormones (HGH) should be two years.
But there was a huge "however" in the two-page document.
It said: "However, based on specific, exceptional circumstances to be evaluated in the first instance by the competent international federations, there may be a provision for a possible modification of the two-year sanction."
The decision effectively changes very little from the status quo where some sports treat serious offenders differently from others, even when they are caught taking the same drug.
There was worry among some delegates that the language of the declaration was too vague and a general two-year ban was still an illusion because a skilled lawyer could interpret every case as exceptional.
"If athletes cannot be certain that every athlete is subject to the same rules, our credibility is destroyed, " said Mark Sisson from the International Triathon Union. "The Triathlon Union would prefer the language to be firm and clear."
Another delegate added: "The present wording of the text makes a general two-year suspension an illusion."
The decision may encourage more sports to introduce a two-year ban but they are under no obligation to hand it out to all athletes.
The only positive thing to come out of three days of talking has been the establishment of the new agency to carry out more out-of-competition tests around the world.
The leaders said they hoped to have it in place by the Sydney 2000 Olympics. The agency will involve representatives from governments and inter-governmental organisations as well as the sporting world.
Sports such as cycling and soccer had expressed their concerns about the legal implications of setting sanctions in stone, worried about competitors taking their cases to the civil courts.
There had been calls for the sports to be thrown out of the Games if they failed to commit themselves to a two-year ban.
But the legal argument that every individual must be treated differently depending on their circumstances appears to have won the day.
It may satisfy the courts but is likely to be greeted by confusion by competitors around the world.
When the international federations met the IOC in November to prepare their proposals for this conference, most of them agreed to put forward a two-year suspension for a first offence and a life ban for second offence.
But they have failed to push the proposal through. There was not even a mention of a life ban in the conference's declaration.
After so much expectation before the conference, the failure to be more dynamic on one of the key aspects of anti-doping policy is a futher blow to the IOC and its beleaguered president Juan Antonio Samaranch.
Samaranch came to the conference under fire from the media to resign after the Salt Lake bribery scandal. A breakthrough at the conference would have been a huge boost to his credibility.
In November it was proposed in black and white that Samaranch should head the new agency.
But Thursday's declaration made no mention of the personalities involved in the initiative and it is unlikely that the 78-year-old Spaniard will be given the job.
Reuters
