Privacy Policy

Anti-doping information

Drug Free Sport New Zealand (DFSNZ) collects personal information from athletes and other persons where this information is necessary and appropriate to conduct its anti-doping activities under the World Anti-Doping Code (Code) and Sports Anti-Doping Act 2006. These activities include collecting whereabouts information, conducting testing, performing results management, determining whether use of a prohibited substance or prohibited method is limited to a legitimate and documented therapeutic purpose, educating participants on their rights and responsibilities, conducting investigations into anti-doping and initiating legal proceedings against persons who are alleged to have committed anti-doping rule violations. 

The types of personal information that may be collected by DFSNZ include information relating to an Athlete’s name, date of birth, contact details and sporting affiliations, whereabouts, designated therapeutic use exemptions (if any), anti-doping test results, and results management (including disciplinary hearings, appeals and sanctions) as well as personal details and contact information relating to other Persons, such as medical professionals and other Persons working with, treating or assisting an Athlete in the context of Anti-Doping Activities. 

DFSNZ may collect personal information through:

• The Athlete Whereabouts Programme;
• Therapeutic Use Exemption applications;
• Online/ Phone Supplement Checks;
• Testing and testing programmes;
• Sample collection;
• Sports Anti-doping educational activities; and
• Reporting Doping in Sport. 

Information collected will only be used for anti-doping purposes.

Information obtained through use of website

In addition, DFSNZ may collect personal information through use of its website. If you log your details for any services on www.drugfreesport.org.nz, we may ask for your name, postal address, e-mail address and role in sport (e.g. athlete, coach, NSO etc.) This information is gathered to allow us to process your request and provide you with the best possible service. The information you provide may be used by us, our agents or sub-contractors to communicate with you on any matter relating to the conduct of your account and the provision of our services in general.

Information collected through the website may also be used for DFSNZ’s anti-doping activities.
We may also use information and statistics for the purposes of monitoring website use in order to help us develop our website and our services.  However, this information will not include anything that could be used to identify an individual. We may also wish to provide you with information which may be relevant to you by the way of e-newsletters. If you do not wish to receive these, please click unsubscribe in the e-newsletter.
We may also contact you about specific matters which we believe may be of use to you directly by email.  If you do not wish to receive these intermittent updates, please send an email to info@drugfreesport.org.nz to us with the word unsubscribe in the heading and your name.

Recipients of personal information
Personal information collected by DFSNZ may be shared with WADA, other Anti-Doping Organisations, International Federations and National Governing Bodies of sports, the New Zealand Olympic Committee or Paralympics New Zealand as required by the Code for anti-doping purposes. The information may also be provided to other agencies if required by law.

Location of personal information
All personal information collected by DFSNZ will be held by DFSNZ, Level 1, Building 2, Central Park Corporate Centre, 666 Great South Road, Greenlane, Auckland 1051. 

Authority for collecting information 
Collection of personal information is authorised under the Sports Anti-Doping Act 2006, the Code and Sports Anti-Doping Rules 2016. In some instances, supply of the information is mandatory:

• Supply of whereabouts information by the Athlete is mandatory under New Zealand’s Sports Anti-Doping Rules. Failure to supply the information may result in the Athlete committing an anti-doping rule violation.
• Supply of personal information is necessary for an Athlete to obtain a Therapeutic Use exemption. Failure to supply necessary personal information is likely to result in an application being declined and may lead to an anti-doping rule violation.  

Retention of personal information
Personal information will only be retained where it remains relevant to fulfilling DSNZ’s obligations under the Code. It will be retained for the periods of time as set out in Annex A to the International Standard for the Protection of Privacy and Personal Information (ISPPPI). As such, some information may be retained indefinitely.

Disclosure of personal information
Public disclosure of personal information may occur where required under New Zealand’s Sports-Anti Doping Rules. New Zealand’s Sports’ Anti-Doping Rules require DFSNZ to publicly report the final result of anti-doping proceedings where an anti-doping violation is found to have been committed. Public disclosure may further be required by law.

Rights of Access and Correction
The Athlete has rights of access to, and correction of, personal information as provided by the Privacy Act 2020. The athlete also has rights with respect to the information as provided under the ISPPPI, including a procedure for submitting complaints pursuant to section 11.5 ISPPPI. Any complaint should be submitted to DFSNZ’s Privacy Officer, phone 0800 DRUG FREE (378 437).

Protecting your personal information
DFSNZ has put in place various security measures to ensure personal information collected by us is as safe as possible. We operate and protect our systems with the use of, but not limited to, firewalls, limited access to information, use of passwords and encryption and such other technologies to help keep information private and secure. We also keep your information confidential. The internal procedures of DFSNZ cover the storage, access and disclosure of your information.

If any of the information that you have provided to DFSNZ changes, for example if you change your email address, name or if you wish to cancel your registration, please let us know the correct details by sending us an email

DFSNZ complies with the Privacy Act 2020 and the ISPPPI.

Contact Us
We welcome your views about our website and our privacy policy. If you would like to contact us with any queries or comments please send us an email.

Transparency Statement: Information Gathering by Drug Free Sport NZ

This Transparency Statement explains how Drug Free Sport NZ collects, uses and shares information gathered about athletes for the purpose of investigating compliance with and implementing the World Anti-Doping Code.

We take care to exercise our information gathering powers lawfully and appropriately, in order to meet our obligations under the Sports Anti-Doping Act 2006, the Privacy Act 2020, the State Services Commission Information-Gathering Model Standards and any relevant Drug Free Sport NZ policies and procedures at all times.

What information is covered by this statement, and why do we collect it?

This section explains how we collect, use and share information when we are carrying out our investigations and testing functions under s 12 of the Act, and the Sports Anti-Doping Rules. We are required under the Act to protect athletes’ fundamental right to participate in doping-free sport, promoting health, fairness and equality. To help protect the integrity and reputation of sport in New Zealand, we gather information which we consider to be important in investigating an athlete’s potential breach of the Code and the Rules. 

We collect information via a testing programme, where the samples taken from the tests are monitored for biomarkers of doping that may indirectly reveal the effects of performance enhancing drugs or methods.  

We are required to protect such information and only disclose it where legally permitted and where necessary to give effect to our legislative responsibilities.

This statement applies to information gathered by us, our contractors, or any third parties engaged by us.

Information collected directly

Most of the information we obtain is provided directly to us by people or entities, or to authorised representatives such as our external consultants, as required to fulfil our statutory obligations. 

Where we are investigating potential compliance breaches brought to our attention, or initiating our own investigations into potential breaches of the Code and/or Rules, we may also gather information ourselves directly from people or entities using our statutory powers. 

Information collected from another person or agency

In some cases we may receive or request information from other people or agencies.  Such information will be gathered in compliance with our statutory powers and in compliance with the relevant legislation and any information sharing and matching agreements, memoranda of understanding (MOUs) or similar arrangements.  We will take all practicable steps to verify information received from third parties.

Collection by third parties

Where information gathering requires specialist capability that we do not have within our organisation, we may engage a third party to collect information for us.  Such information gathering is subject to standard legal limits relating to privacy, search and surveillance, access to private property, and the privacy/security by individuals, among other things.

Any information gathering, including by any relevant third parties, must be approved according to our internal authorisation process and must be in line with our obligations under the Act, the Privacy Act 2020, the State Services Commission Information-Gathering Model Standards and any relevant Drug Free Sport NZ policies and procedures at all times.

How we use your information

We collect information to fulfil our legislative functions, including to investigate potential breaches of the Code and/or the Rules. Where we identify the need to use the information to further investigate a potential rule violation, we will only do so if required or permitted by law. 

When we share your information

We may share information with third parties where necessary to carry out our statutory functions. Information is shared only in accordance with relevant statutory powers and in compliance with our relevant legal obligations, and any information sharing agreements, MOUs with other agencies, and our own internal policies.

We may share information with third parties when we are considering and investigating compliance breaches, complaints, and initiating our own investigations or inquiries. We will take all practicable steps to verify information provided to third parties.

We may, for example, share information with:

• other regulatory agencies, where sharing may be necessary to assist that regulatory agency to carry out its statutory functions;
• the other party to an investigation, oversight agency, or complaints body;
• third parties engaged by us to collect information as outlined above;
• the Police or another government agency, if required or allowed by law (for example, to assist with the investigation of a criminal offence, or contravention of the law; or to report significant misconduct or breach of duty or where there is a serious threat to health or safety.  If our staff are threatened or abused, we may refer this to the Police.

We will also share information with third parties if we are required to do so by law.  

How will we protect your information?

Information is stored and retained in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Information Security Policy, and in compliance with the Privacy Act 2020 and the Public Records Act 2005.

Enquiries and complaints

If you have any enquiries about our information gathering activities, or believe we have not acted lawfully or have acted inconsistently with the State Services Commission Code of Conduct in gathering information, you can contact us here.