The Science Behind Anti-Doping (FutureLearn)

Offered by King's College London,
The Science Behind Anti-Doping (FutureLearn)

Discover the life-cycle of a sample collected for anti-doping processes within sport, and the science behind it. Learn the science behind the anti-doping process with King’s College London. This fascinating course will cover the life cycle of a sample (blood and urine) collected for anti-doping purposes within sport and explain the science behind the analytical processes involved.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see FutureLearn's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

Gain an understanding the WADA anti-doping system
After getting an overview of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), you’ll cover the prohibited drugs list and will get an insight into screening methods of both blood and urine.
You’ll also gain an understanding of the collaborations with WADA (World Anti-doping Agency), UKAD (UK Anti-Doping) and PCC (Partnership for Clean Competition), as well as high profile VIP sports professionals.

Discover how samples are tested and learn about the future of anti-doping
You’ll then see how an accredited anti-doping laboratory needs to meet the highest quality assurance standards in order to serve sporting bodies and professionals.
You’ll also learn how the samples tested and analysed, validated and confirmed, as well as which instruments and scientific processes are used throughout.
Before the course ends, you’ll cover a range of case studies and will gain an insight into future directions of research and development.

Get the know-how from the experts at the Drug Control Centre (DCC)
The internationally renowned Drug Control Centre (DCC) was founded in 1978 in association with the UK Sports Council, and since then has been at the forefront of advances in anti-doping science. It is an integral part of King’s Forensics, a specialised research department at King’s College London.
You’ll be taught by academic and teaching experts who also teach on the postgraduate Master’s degree programmes in Analytical Toxicology and Forensic Science at King’s College London.

What topics will you cover?
The course will cover the life cycle of a sample (blood and urine) collected for anti-doping purposes and explain the science behind the analytical processes involved. Subjects covered include:

  • WADA prohibited drugs list
  • WADA and UKAS accreditation and quality assurance
  • Screening methods: urine and blood
  • Athletes biological passport and adverse analytical findings (UKAD)
  • Education and prevention (UKAD)
  • Case studies in the public arena
  • Future directions: research and development

What will you achieve?
By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Reflect on the role of the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) and the reason why the organisation is so important to everyone involved in sport worldwide.
  • Discuss how the UK Accreditation Service (UKAS) provides a robust system for ensuring that quality assurance standards are maintained using validated scientific methods for testing sports samples fairly and appropriately.
  • Explore the science behind the methodology used by an accredited anti-doping laboratory to meet the international standard for laboratories (ISL).
  • Investigate the drugs that are present on the WADA Prohibited List and what the specialist accredited status of the laboratories permitted to carry out testing means in practice.
  • Explore the relationship between UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) and the London Drug Control Centre (WADA accredited laboratory).
  • Explore current and future practices that are supporting research to improve the capabilities for identifying people who are cheating.

Who is the course for?
This course is likely to be appealing to non-health professionals, such as journalists and bloggers, as well as amateur athletes, coaches, and others involved in the world of sport.
It’s also suited to anyone who has been interested in the latest doping controversies around the world.

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

International Entertainment and Sports Marketing (Coursera) Coursera
Yonsei University

International Entertainment and Sports Marketing (Coursera)

This course will provide learners with a fundamental understanding of the characteristics and marketing strategies related to two key global industries, sports and entertainment. The growth in both industries have been fueled by their ability to innovate via CCCI, i.e. cross-country and cross-industry expansion. There will be a graded quiz that will consists of 10 questions during the first two weeks (together worth 50% of the grade) and a final quiz that contains 20 questions (worth 50% of the grade) in the third week.

Jun 8th 2026
3 Weeks
Sports and Society (Coursera) Coursera
Duke University

Sports and Society (Coursera)

Sports play a giant role in contemporary society worldwide. But few of us pause to think about the larger questions of money, politics, race, sex, culture, and commercialization that surround sports everywhere. This course draws on the tools of anthropology, sociology, history, and other disciplines to give you new perspectives on the games we watch and play.

May 18th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Identifying and Responding to Drug and Alcohol Addiction in Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Healthcare Practice (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Trinity College Dublin

Identifying and Responding to Drug and Alcohol Addiction in Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Healthcare Practice (FutureLearn)

Discover new approaches to addiction treatment and recovery and build your knowledge and leadership skills to respond effectively. Learn how to identify addiction, manage recovery, and lead change. On this course, you’ll receive an overview of approaches to addiction treatment, from detoxification to harm reduction and addiction recovery.

Sep 6th 2021
3 Weeks
Falling Down: Problematic Substance Use in Later Life (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
Middlesex University London,Matua Raki

Falling Down: Problematic Substance Use in Later Life (FutureLearn)

Learn more about the issues faced by older people in relation to problematic substance use. Older people face specific issues in relation to problematic substance use. Demography and a growing ageing population make understanding these ever more important. But older people’s problems tend to be more invisible, both in care services and in substance use services. This online course brings these issues together from a health, social care, informal carer and public health point of view.

No sessions available
5-12 Weeks
A prática da gestão de clubes e federações esportivas (Coursera) Coursera
FIA Business School

A prática da gestão de clubes e federações esportivas (Coursera)

O aluno irá aprender conceitos da gestão de clubes e federações esportivas, conceitos de marketing voltados ao esporte e conceitos de patrocínio esportivo. Iremos abordar a relação das federações esportivas com a imprensa e serão dados conceitos de finanças voltados a instituições esportivas.

May 25th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Prediction Models with Sports Data (Coursera) Coursera
University of Michigan

Prediction Models with Sports Data (Coursera)

In this course the learner will be shown how to generate forecasts of game results in professional sports using Python. The main emphasis of the course is on teaching the method of logistic regression as a way of modeling game results, using data on team expenditures. The learner is taken through the process of modeling past results, and then using the model to forecast the outcome games not yet played.

Jun 8th 2026
5-12 Weeks
National Academy of Sports Medicine Nutrition Essentials (Coursera) Coursera
National Academy of Sports Medicine

National Academy of Sports Medicine Nutrition Essentials (Coursera)

NASM's Nutrition Coaching Essentials enables you to provide evidence-based guidance to those seeking to improve body composition, athletic performance, and health. By successfully completing this program, you will have the knowledge and abilities to leverage nutrition education to increase your client's success, reduce turnover, and maximize adherence.

Jun 8th 2026
1 Week
Business History of the FIFA World Cup (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of York

Business History of the FIFA World Cup (FutureLearn)

Trace the historic development of the FIFA World Cup as a business entity to build expertise in sports business and management. On this three-week course from the University of York, you’ll trace the business history of the FIFA World Cup. Acknowledging the broader cultural, political, economic and social context of the tournament, you’ll examine its status as a business supported by a system of increasingly powerful monopolies.

Jan 29th 2024
3 Weeks
Foundations of Sports Analytics: Data, Representation, and Models in Sports (Coursera) Coursera
University of Michigan

Foundations of Sports Analytics: Data, Representation, and Models in Sports (Coursera)

This course provides an introduction to using Python to analyze team performance in sports. Learners will discover a variety of techniques that can be used to represent sports data and how to extract narratives based on these analytical techniques. The main focus of the introduction will be on the use of regression analysis to analyze team and player performance data, using examples drawn from the National Football League (NFL), the National Basketball Association (NBA), the National Hockey League (NHL), the English Premier LEague (EPL, soccer) and the Indian Premier League (IPL, cricket).

Jun 8th 2026
5-12 Weeks