Every British Olympian competing in Beijing this summer will be drugs tested at least once before the Games under a tough anti-doping regime announced yesterday that is expected to yield a rise in whistle-blowing by athletes. Testers at UK Sport, the public funding agency for elite competition, will carry out more than 1,500 tests before July 27, when the IOC takes over at the opening of the athletes' village in China.

The £1 million pre-Games testing operation is the largest undertaken by British sport officials. It was announced on the day that a Great Britain track cyclist was withdrawn from the World Championships in Manchester for an abnormal test result. Robert Hayles was suspended for a fortnight after he recorded a red cell count above the permitted level.

The pre-Games testing programme is designed to ensure that no drugs cheats reach Beijing. Most tests - of blood and urine - will be conducted, with no advance notice, at training camps or other out-of-competition destinations.

“We have been a world leader in putting down a marker that we will not tolerate any athlete joining the Olympic or Paralympic teams if they have not been tested,” John Scott, the director of drug-free sport at UK Sport, said. “Our priority is to make sure athletes have no desire to dope, realise the risk they are running if they even consider it and to be able to give some assurance to the public that the performance of the British athletes is a true performance.”

Athletes will also be expected to attend face-to-face workshops to learn about their responsibilities regarding testing, the changing status of banned substances and the risks of taking legal supplements.

Under the UK National Anti- Doping Policy introduced last year, athletes must specify where they would be available for testing for one hour a day at least five days a week. Three missed tests within 18 months without “exceptional circumstances” constitutes an anti-doping violation and can incur a ban of up to two years.

The UK is one of three countries to enforce the “three strikes and you're out” rule. Christine Ohuruogu, the world 400 metres champion, served a one-year ban before her successful appeal last year. She is a leading gold-medal hope for Britain in Beijing.

As part of the improved education programme around performance- enhancing drugs, athletes will have access to a phone hotline in Beijing to ensure that they are clear about the anti-doping process. About 4,500 tests will be carried out during the 16-day event, which starts on August 8.

“It is absolutely essential all the athletes understand what their responsibilities and accountabilities are,” Scott said. “We do not want any repeats of inadvertent doping, so we are putting out as many messages as we can.”

UK Sport also hopes that the new world anti-doping code that comes into force on January 1 next year will encourage greater peer pressure in the fight against drugs. Under the code, athletes caught taking banned substances could reduce their punishment by up to three quarters by blowing the whistle on fellow cheats.

“One of the best pressures is from athletes themselves. I believe they can do more,” Scott said. “They are in regular contact with one another and they need to constantly reinforce a zero-tolerance attitude, by not turning a blind eye and confronting it.”

A new National Anti-Doping Organisation, which should be operational by 2012, is expected to work more closely with law enforcement agencies to stem the supply of prohibited substances. UK Sport has had discussions with the Home Office about tightening the law regarding the possession of anabolic steroids. A business plan for the new government agency, operating independently from UK Sport, will be presented to the sports minister at the end of April.

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