COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The World Anti-Doping Agency has called off a lawsuit and an ethics case previously initiated against critics in the United States regarding its management of a doping incident involving Chinese swimmers.

On Thursday, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency announced that the defamation lawsuit filed in a Swiss court, directed at the American organization, has been retracted, as has an ethics complaint aimed at former U.S. drug czar Rahul Gupta.

Travis Tygart, the CEO of USADA, referred to the conclusion of these legal disputes as “complete vindication for us both.” This development was initially disclosed by the website Honest Sport, which acquired correspondence from WADA’s leadership to its executive committee.

In a letter, WADA expressed confidence in the lawsuit’s potential success, yet noted the futility of engaging with those unwilling to accept clear evidence, asserting that such interactions primarily aimed at damaging WADA and the global anti-doping framework.

Tensions had escalated over WADA’s handling of cases involving Chinese swimmers who tested positive but received no penalties after their country’s anti-doping agency ruled that the results stemmed from contamination. WADA claimed to have commissioned an independent investigation which concluded that the agency acted “reasonably.” Critics, however, argue that this inquiry, conducted by an attorney picked by WADA, was inadequate.

Additionally, WADA retracted the ethics complaint it had lodged last summer against Gupta, who was part of the agency’s executive committee.

In response to the dropped allegations, Gupta conveyed in an email to the New York Times that the actions taken by WADA were politically driven and lacked merit.

These ongoing disputes contributed to the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, which Gupta oversaw during the Biden administration, deciding to withhold the $3.6 million annual contribution to WADA.