Law Professor Appointed to National Anti-Doping Review Board for Athletes
January 25, 2010
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
Dionne Koller, assistant professor in the University of Baltimore School of Law and an expert in the growing area of athletes' eligibility in high-profile sporting events such as the Olympics, has been appointed to the United States Anti-Doping Agency's Anti-Doping Review Board. Koller will serve a two-year term on the board, which is in charge of reviewing results from drug tests reported by the USADA as "adverse" or "atypical," and that the agency may find cause to bring forward as a potential violation of anti-doping rules.
Koller has published numerous scholarly articles in the sports law field, and she is a frequent commentator on current issues in the sports world. In addition, she has provided pro bono representation for Olympic athletes involved in eligibility disputes. She currently serves on the Executive Board for the Sports Law Section of the Association of American Law Schools and is a member of the Virginia and District of Columbia bars.
"I am honored to be a part of USADA's efforts to ensure the integrity of sport while respecting athletes' rights," Koller said of her appointment. "The recent admission by Mark McGwire as well as the upcoming Vancouver Olympic Games serves as a reminder that there is always work to be done to keep sport clean and the sporting ideal intact."
Last October, Koller arranged and coordinated, through the law school's Center for Sport and the Law, an unprecedented gathering of amateur sports experts for the school's inaugural amateur sports symposium. "From Doping to Diversity: Legal Issues in the American Olympic Movement" attracted a range of high-profile guest speakers, including Travis Tygart, CEO of the USADA; Deedee Corradini, president of U.S. Women's Ski Jumping and, as former mayor of Salt Lake City, a major figure in bringing the 2002 Winter Olympics to that city; Doug Logan, current CEO of USA Track & Field and former commissioner, president and CEO of Major League Soccer; and John Ruger, athlete ombudsman for the United States Olympic Committee. The Center for Sport and the Law is supported by the Baltimore Orioles and the Baltimore Ravens.
For the Anti-Doping Review Board's examination of potential violations, Koller will be the legal expert among a team of three board members appointed by USADA's CEO to review potential violations of the Anti-Doping Code which applies to Olympic Movement athletes.
The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the School of Law, the Yale Gordon College of Liberal Arts and the Merrick School of Business.