Former Russian anti-doping agency RUSADA Exec Dir Nikita Kamaev approached Sunday Times sports writer David Walsh "10 weeks before his unexpected death offering to blow the whistle on his country’s secret development of performance-enhancing drugs," according to Nicholas Hellen of the SUNDAY TIMES. Kamaev, 52, said that he wanted to "write a book that would expose the full extent of doping in Russia." Kamaev sent an email to Walsh in early December, saying, "I want to write a book about the true story of sport pharmacology and doping in Russia since 1987 while being a young scientist working in secret lab in USSR Institute of Sports Medicine. I have the information and facts that have never been published." News that Kamaev intended to reveal secrets "will deepen suspicions over his death" from a heart attack on Feb. 14. He had just returned from cross-country skiing near his mother’s dacha close to Moscow. In another email sent on Dec. 4, Kamaev wrote, "My personal archive contains actual documents, including confidential sources, regarding the development of performance enhancing drugs and medicine in sport, correspondence with the anti-doping community, ministry of sports, IOC [International Olympic Committee], NOC [National Olympic Committee], Wada [World Anti-Doping Agency], personally and more." Kamaev was the second former head of RUSADA to die this month. Vyacheslav Sinev, whom he replaced as exec director in '11 and who had a history of heart problems, died on Feb. 3. The death of Kamaev will leave the IAAF to "wonder what he might have revealed." The IAAF "will also want details about the secret laboratory for which Kamaev worked as a young scientist" from '87. A report for WADA in November revealed the existence of a second Moscow laboratory, in addition to one accredited by the agency, "and concluded that its role was to cover up what would otherwise be positive drug tests" (SUNDAY TIMES, 2/21).
FIRSTHAND ACCOUNT: In London, Walsh wrote in first person, on Nov. 21 an email was sent to the sports department of The Sunday Times. It said, "Good evening. Can I ask for Mr Walsh’s email for personal conversation?" The email had been sent by Kamaev. I replied on Dec. 1, "inviting him to get in touch by email." He wrote the next day explaining that he was "working on a book." It would be the "true story of doping in Russia." Perhaps Kamaev felt that he was "being made to carry the can for a Russian problem that was widespread and state-supported?" On Dec. 3, I wrote and asked him if he was "prepared to reveal everything he had learnt since first working in the secret laboratory 28 years before." A day later "he replied saying he was." He had documents, confidential sources, correspondence with various int'l and Russian agencies, "and he suggested that what was revealed in the German TV documentary was nothing compared to what he had." We agreed to conduct a Skype call "sometime the following week." I did not "get back to him." There was "no doubt the emails were authentic" but the third email showed his English was not good and that "co-authoring a book written in English would be exceedingly difficult." There were "other reasons for my reluctance." I "knew more about Kamaev" than he realized. When the WADA report was first published, Kamaev criticized it for "relying too heavily on the testimony of athletes who had been sanctioned for doping" and accused it of "bias against Russia." He was "whistling against the wind and soon knew it." WADA suspended RUSADA. Kamaev and his fellow directors at RUSADA "were sacrificed." Officially it was said he had left RUSADA. It was then that he wrote to The Sunday Times. At 52 Kamaev was found dead last Monday. Reports said he died of a "massive heart attack." His death came 12 days after the passing of Sinev. On a Russian message board "someone joked that the two former Rusada directors must have known a lot" (SUNDAY TIMES, 2/21).
