The Olympic Summit has been billed as a key step in order to pave the way to "a more robust, more efficient and more independent worldwide anti-doping system".

According to the International Olympic Committee (IOC), discussions "will focus on the protection of clean athletes and, more specifically, on a review of the WADA anti-doping system".

While making no direct reference to the Summit, the five representatives of the public authorities in the Executive Committee of WADA have released a statement, welcoming the decision by the organisation to organise a Think Tank on September 20 and stressing that they will continue to work to "further improve the international anti-doping system".

The statement was signed by the African Union’s Mustapha S. Kaloko, the Dominican Republic’s Marcos Diaz, Japan’s Toshiei Mizuochi, Norway’s Thorhild Widvey and Sussan Ley of Australia.

"On behalf of the public authorities of all five continents, whom we represent in the WADA Executive Committee, we would like to welcome the initiative of the management of WADA to organise the Think Tank in Lausanne on 20 September 2016 and to express our satisfaction with the quality of the discussions that were held there and unanimity of the participants in supporting the organisation," the statement read.

"Drawing upon the outcomes of the Think Tank, the public authorities, who on equal terms with the sport movement, compose and fund WADA, wish to stress that they remain fully committed to strengthen the global fight against doping and for the protection of clean athletes.

"In this respect, the public authorities intend to work, in the coming months, towards developing concrete proposals to further improve the international anti-doping system.

"These proposals will aim to strengthen the effectiveness of WADA’s operational activities and to enable it to respond better to current and emerging challenges in the anti-doping field.

"It is our firm belief that, in any reform of the world anti-doping system, WADA must remain the only global regulator responsible for co-ordinating, monitoring and standard-setting in the anti-doping field.

"Its activities should be based on the principles of independence, good governance, transparency, accountability, respect for human rights, non-discrimination, equity and equality between public authorities and the sports movement.

"Public authorities will welcome co-operation with the sports movement in preparing these proposals."

The assertion that WADA must remain the only global regulator comes ahead of the Summit, which has largely been viewed by many as an opportunity to take back control, with the participants being dominated by IOC figures and allies of President Thomas Bach.

WADA, who will be represented by their President, and former IOC vice-president, Sir Craig Reedie, now claim to view the Summit as just one step in a process building up to their Foundation Board meeting in Glasgow on November 21.

insidethegames understands that this means that they will not necessarily conform to decisions made here.

The Institute of National Anti-Doping Organisations (iNADO) have taken the offensive ahead of the Summit, accusing the IOC of "losing the anti-doping battle at Rio", having opted against handing Russia a blanket ban from the Games over allegations of state-sponsored drug use.

"It is less than 18 months until the next Olympics," said Joseph de Pencier, chief executive of iNADO.

"Let's hope the IOC uses that time wisely to ensure that the reception of Russian athletes in Pyeongchang is very different than the one in Rio.

"Drawing on the deep reservoir of global passion for true sport - clean competition - the IOC can redeem itself and again contribute positively to the global effort for clean sport."

iNADO has called on the IOC to acknowledge Richard McLaren's WADA-funded report into Russian doping as being "well-documented and reliable findings and not mere allegations", while they requested an "end to attacks of individual IOC members on WADA".

It follows Sergey Bubka and Juan-Antonio Samaranch being among IOC members to criticise WADA in recent days.

The senior IOC figures have attempted to blame WADA for not having investigated Russian problems earlier, while also claiming they should play more of a servicing and testing role rather than a regulatory "political" one.

The iNADO have also called upon the IOC to support independent doping control for international sport federations under WADA’s regulatory oversight, encourage whistleblowers and improve governance of sporting organisations.

A further call was made for broadcasters and sponsors to contribute to the costs of anti-doping, with WADA currently being funded 50/50 by the IOC and international Governments.

A period of fractious bickering has occurred between sporting and anti-doping authorities in the lead up to the Summit, despite repeated assertions that a more "independent" system is needed.

The main source of contention is likely to be over the interpretation of independent by the parties present.

"We cannot take any decisions, because it is about the review of the WADA Anti-Doping system, where we can and will make recommendations for WADA to improve in a very constructive way," Bach said earlier this week.

"I am sure that one of the major proposals will be to make the entire anti-doping system independent from the sports organisations.

"And to ask WADA to take the organisational measures to perform these tests in a more efficient and more robust way."

The Olympic Summit is fully closed to the media.

Bach is expected to speak in a teleconference afterwards.