The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in Britain said it has started testing international athletes in Britain ahead of the London Olympics, according to a news break on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the British Olympic Association has announced a minimum mandatory four-year ban for drug cheats following WADA's code. Athletes can be tested without notice at any time.
As a new development in anti-doping efforts, and for the first time in Olympic history, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), a tier 3 private sponsor, will be lending help to the cause. The pharmaceutical company has partnered with Kings College London to provide laboratory facilities for the scientists to perform their duties.
Only a short distance from the Olympic Park in east London's Harlow, Essex, the fully accredited $30 million dollar laboratory is now fully operational.
"There is no issue of greater importance in protecting the health and well-being of athletes, and the integrity of sport, than the fight against doping," BOA chairman Lord Moynihan said from a meeting of the Association of National Olympic Committees in Moscow.
"It is right that Wada is leading a worldwide consultation process, but far more must be done."
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