Zhang Hong is one of 13 people to be added to the WADA Athlete Council ©Getty Images

Zhang Hong, the Chinese speed skater who claimed gold at the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games, has become one of the 13 members selected to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Athlete Council so far.

She is one of five athletes who were assigned their position in Group 1, which is appointed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and International Paralympic Committee's Athletes Commissions.

Zhang is joined in this group by Kenyan former rugby sevens player and IOC member Humphrey Kayange, two-time women's ice hockey Olympic bronze medallist Emma Terho from Finland, three-time Dutch wheelchair basketball Paralympian Jitske Visser and two-time Olympic mountain bike silver medallist Maja Włoszczowska from Poland.

Eight athletes were elected in Group 2 by the Athlete Commissions of International Federations (IFs), of which 59 of the 61 eligible IFs voted.

The second round of voting saw 45 of them participate.

Among them is Hungarian gymnast and International Testing Agency ambassador Dora Hegyi.

Olympic rowing gold medallist Kristen Kit of Canada is one of them too.

American biathlete Clare Egan is one of those elected in Group 2 ©Getty Images
American biathlete Clare Egan is one of those elected in Group 2 ©Getty Images

Two-time biathlon Olympian Clare Egan of the United States, Croatian Para volleyball player Ivan Ćosić, two-time German ice hockey Olympian Jennifer Harß, Brazilian Para equestrian silver medallist Rodolpho Riskalla, Australian wheelchair basketball Paralympian Ella Sabljak and Italian free diver Alessia Zecchini comprise the rest of Group 2.

"On behalf of WADA, I would like to extend our congratulations to the 13 new members for Groups 1 and 2 of the Agency's Athlete Council," said WADA President Witold Bańka.

"With this announcement, we are one step closer to our Athlete Council being realised, which is an exciting prospect for everyone involved. 

"We were pleased to see that the Group 2 election ran smoothly and we are confident that the appointment process for Group 3 of the Athlete Council will follow suit."

WADA is calling for the other seven positions in Group 3 to be filled, which is to be selected by the Athlete Council Appointment Panel.

To make this last group, the candidates must be an international-level athlete, obedient of the WADA Code and meeting this criteria within the nine years before first taking office.

Candidates must nominate themselves by September 30.