Russia is back in world sport, but who is drug testing its athletes?

DW has found that three-quarters of Russia's weightlifting team had no independent out-of-competition testing before this year's world championships, despite the country's doping history. Fresh questions have emerged over Russia 's return to world sport after figures reviewed by DW showed that only four of the 16 Russian weightlifters competing at this year's world championships underwent out-of-competition testing by the International Testing Agency (ITA).

Two-time European champion Anastasiia Romanova, who previously served a two-year doping ban, was among those not tested by the ITA during the first nine months of 2026, according to its quarterly anti-doping reports. By comparison, all 13 members of the North Korean team underwent at least one ITA test during the same period.

North Korea , like Russia, has a history of doping violations in weightlifting.