Lausanne, Switzerland (dpa) - A new anti-doping programme independent of international federations is to be up and running by the 2018 Winter Olympics, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said at the conclusion of its executive committee meeting on Thursday.Under the new programme, tests are to be carried out only by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and sanctions given only by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.Presently each country has its own anti-doping agency but the IOC is reacting after a systematic programme of doping and cover-ups was found in Russian athletics, which led to Russia being suspended by athletics governing body IAAF.Additionally the new anti-doping unit should possess a "professional intelligence gathering unit" which "would allow WADA to be proactive," the IOC said.It is not clear how long the change from the existing anti-doping programme will take but the IOC has set the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang as a target.The three-day executive committee meeting in Lausanne also agreed the IOC would launch an independent audit of money it provided to sports organizations."Recent incidents have shown that, in the interest of the credibility of all sports organisations immediate action to reinforce good governance is necessary," the IOC said.The IAAF and world football governing body FIFA are currently engulfed by various corruption affairs."
