All athletes at Worlds to undergo blood tests

The blood-testing programme at the August 27-September 4 event in Daegu, South Korea, will be carried out in addition to the regular doping controls -- in Daegu approximately 500 urine samples will be collected in and out-of-competition combined, the IAAF said.

It will mark the first time that almost 2,000 elite athletes competing in a major sports event will be blood tested under the same optimal conditions, within the same period.

The samples will be analysed by the Lausanne WADA-accredited Anti-Doping Laboratory (LAD) on-site in Daegu for a first screening analysis and after the end of the Championships in Lausanne for further analyses.  The analyses would focus on measuring relevant parameters (biomarkers) for individual profiling purposes within the framework of the Athlete Biological Passport, IAAF said.

The results will be used in three ways -- as a first “fingerprint” for athletes with no previous records at the IAAF; to build upon already existing athlete profiles recorded and followed at the IAAF; and to establish the reference ranges of relevant biomarkers among elite male and female athletes.