The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has confirmed that its 2026 Regional Symposiums for Europe and Africa, originally planned for Baku, Azerbaijan, and Cairo, Egypt, will no longer take place in person. The agency said the decision was made because of continuing uncertainty linked to the war in the Middle East.

Instead, WADA will launch a dedicated webinar series to deliver the main elements of the two postponed events. According to the announcement, the programme is expected to include up to 12 core webinars, scheduled across two weeks in June 2026, on 9–11 June and 16–18 June.

The sessions will focus on key areas linked to the implementation of the 2027 World Anti-Doping Code and International Standards, including operational independence of National Anti-Doping Organizations, compliance, testing, results management, therapeutic use exemptions, education, intelligence and investigations, and data protection. WADA said additional sessions may be added later if needed.

In its statement, WADA thanked the host institutions involved in preparing the original events, including the Ministry of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijan National Anti-Doping Agency (AMADA), the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Egypt, and the Egyptian Anti-Doping Organization. The agency said it appreciated their cooperation and recognised the work that had gone into planning the symposiums.

The official WADA announcement is available here:

https://www.wada-ama.org/en/news/wada-provides-update-regarding-2026-regional-symposiums-europe-and-africa