Brazil expects accreditation for Rio anti-doping lab by Olympics

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) – Brazil’s sports minister on Thursday said a problem that caused a suspension last month of an anti-doping lab in Rio de Janeiro has been corrected and that officials expect its accreditation to be renewed in time for the Olympics next month.

Officials at the lab in Rio said at the time of the suspension by the World Anti-Doping Agency that a technical issue at the facility had led to false positives in some tests, but Leonardo Picciani, the sports minister, told journalists on a conference call that the laboratory is now ready for a test by the agency to renew its accreditation.

“It is certainly ready for the test at hand and ready for the Games,” Picciani said. The Olympics begin in Rio Aug. 5.

(Reporting by Paulo Prada; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)