NCAA Votes To Remove Marijuana From Banned Substances List For College Athletes
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has voted to remove marijuana from its banned substances list for Division I players, effective immediately.
About five months after NCAA’s Division I Council proposed the rule change, the body adopted the policy on Tuesday, emphasizing that cannabis is not a performance enhancing drug and that it should be treated the same way as alcohol.
The reform builds on a 2022 change that increased the allowable THC threshold for college athletes, aligning NCAA’s rules with those of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
The newly adopted rule, which amends NDAA’s drug testing policies for student sports championships and postseason participation in football, will also be retroactively applied, discontinuing any penalties players are currently facing for a cannabis-related violation.
“The NCAA drug testing program is intended to focus on integrity of competition, and cannabis products do not provide a competitive advantage,” Josh Whitman, chair of the council, said in a press release. “The council’s focus is on policies centered on student-athlete health and well-being rather than punishment for cannabis use.”
“Cannabinoids will be addressed like other non-performance enhancing drugs like alcohol,” NCAA said in a social media post. “NCAA members will focus on harm-reduction strategies problematic cannabis use, centering health of student-athletes.”
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