A Bill bringing Bermuda into line with global anti-doping sports law was tabled in the House of Assembly on Friday.Sports Minister Glenn Blakeney said the Bill was essential for Bermudian athletes to continue competing internationally.He said in a ministerial statement that the Bermuda Sport Anti-Doping authority (BSADA) will fulfill the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules on illicit and performance-enhancing drugs in sport.The legislation was “driven by an absolute need” for BSADA to able to sanction athletes when necessary, he added. The new authority replaces the Bermuda Council for Drug-Free Sports.If passed, the Bill will enable BSADA to collect and test samples from athletes, and arrange national hearings to enforce its code.In the next round of legislation, Bermuda will also have to enforce the full list of WADA-banned substances.Otherwise, he said, “Bermuda would no longer be able to host major international events such as International Race Weekend, the PGA Grand Slam, and the Carifta Games.”During a question and answer session about the legislation, Shadow Transport Minister Charlie Swan asked if BSADA would actually perform the testing or simply govern the performance of it.Mr Blakeney replied that some tests will be done on-Island, but tests for certain types of drugs on the banned list will have to be sent overseas as Bermuda does not have the laboratory facilities to do them.WADA formed in 1999 as a result of the “doping scandals that shook the world of cycling in the summer of 1998”, he said.Bermuda became a signatory to the 2004 Copenhagen Declaration on Anti-Doping in Sport, in which the first WADA code was adopted, under then Sports Minister Dale Butler.