Meet Molly, the NI pooch sniffing out drug cheats in Swedish sport
A PORTADOWN pooch has become the world’s first anti-doping dog, sniffing out drugs misuse in sports across Sweden.
Molly, a four-and-a-half year old springer spaniel, was originally used for bird hunting here before being talent spotted and taken to Denmark in May 2017.
Shortly afterwards, the local hound went to live in Sweden with a customs officer, undergoing an intensive six-month training regime to learn how to detect substances used for doping.
She was subsequently sought out by the Swedish Sports Confederation, whose anti-doping unit was on the lookout for a dog to take part in a ground-breaking initiative.
Almost a year ago she went to live with her handler Michael Sjoo (56) and his wife Joanna in their home north of Stockholm, and has been criss-crossing the country in a bid to clean up sport ever since.
Michael, a doctor who has worked part-time as a doping control officer for the confederation’s anti-doping unit for over 25 years, said Molly’s unique talents are invaluable in detecting doping at major sports events.
“Molly can detect pills, gel, injections in bins and even ampoules with liquid in them,” he said.
“She can detect a lot of different doping substances such as steroids, which are the most common, and testosterone, as well as many other substances.
“She started her first controls in December last year and has been working for nearly a year.
“She’s a very special dog, she loves to sniff everything.
“And her nose is so sensitive, which is one of the reasons she was chosen.”
Michael said they work in all types of sport, including hockey, football and weightlifting, and Molly has even been out in the snow at cross-country skiing events.
While anti-doping control officers do not have the power to search bags, they can call in the athletes for tests.
Michael explained: “She goes and sniffs the lockers, bags and buses, but not individuals.
“If Molly marks on a bag I can select that person for doping control, for urine or blood tests.
“She has done a number of positive markings where people have been detected with illegal substances.
“Customs dogs are specialised in detecting drugs such as narcotics, but Molly is for sports, for doping substances. It only takes her five or 10 minutes to check out a locker room.”
He added that he does this work “for the love of sport”.
“You do it because you want to stand up for something,” he said.
“My wife Joanna also works as a doping control officer for the Swedish Sports Confederation and we saw an advert that the sports federation was getting an anti-doping dog, and we applied.
“A lot of Molly’s training was social — being in arenas with a lot of noise, and also learning to live with a family in a home, as she had been living outside in dog kennels.”
Molly has proven a popular addition to the Sjoo household.
“She is a very energetic, social dog and when she is not working she loves to play. She doesn’t like to be alone, she wants to be with you all the time.
“Springer spaniels are working dogs and she’s full of energy, so we would typically walk four to five kilometres every morning, and that’s before breakfast.
“I have no problem getting my 10,000 steps a day!”
He added: “My boys have left home, but I have a new daughter in my house!”