A total of 12 national Governments have made commitments totalling $6,452,296 (£4,320,860/€5,970,857) to the fund - the Special Anti-Doping Research Fund.

Once paid - and just under $1.79 million (£1.20 million/€1.66 million) has been received already - these sums will be matched by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), producing the $13 million total.

Funds are payable in full to WADA by March 31, 2016.

The 12 contributor Governments are: China, Japan, Qatar, the United States, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, France, Ivory Coast, New Zealand, Peru and Sweden.

The intention of creating a new fund for innovative, athlete-centred anti-doping research was announced in December 2013 by IOC President Thomas Bach.

Bach said the IOC would invest $10 million (£6 million/€8 million) and called on Governments to match this amount.

The IOC has now initiated its own call for research in order to utilise the residual $3.5 million (£2.1 million/€2.5 million) of its pledge that will not go direct to the new WADA fund.

It is intended that the research to be funded with this money will complement that of WADA with particular priority given to work that could lead to enhancement of the life of clean athletes.

Sir Craig Reedie, WADA President, said the body was "very pleased" with the financial commitments generated, which would provide a "tremendous boost" to efforts to carry out innovative, anti-doping research focused on protecting the clean athlete.

The initiative was "a real step forward", Sir Craig told insidethegames.

It had appeared during the fundraising process that the new fund would come close to reaching, or even exceeding, its theoretical maximum of $20 million (£12 million/€16 million).

However, insidethegames understands that of the $6 million (£3.5 million/€4.5 million) that the US had indicated it would make available via a body called the Partnership for Clean Competition, only $1.5 million (£2.3 million/€1.9 million) was Government money eligible to be matched by the IOC.

Thomas Bach has claimed that the adoption of Agenda 2020 has had a positive impact in the fight against doping and helping clean athletes compete on an even playing field ©IOC

Bach said toay that the fund "clearly shows that we support innovative anti-doping research that will lead to better protection of the clean athletes".

"With Olympic Agenda 2020, we are changing the philosophy with regard to the credibility of sports competitions and of athletes," he said.

"We must consider every cent in the fight against doping as an investment in the future of Olympic sport, not as an expense."

insidethegames understands that the application process for contributions to research from the new fund will be kept separate from WADA's existing research procedures.

The anti-doping body has invested well over $60 million (£40 million/€55 million) in research since its foundation in 1999.

This latest funding initiative comes at a time when sport's doping scourge, and measures to combat it, are as much in the headlines as ever, not least in high-profile sports such as cycling and athletics.

The International Cycling Union (UCI) last week announced new measures following the publication of the Cycling Independent Reform Commission (CIRC) report.

These measures included strengthening the Cycling Anti-Doping Foundation's move towards a more targeted approach to testing, a tightening up of the use of Therapeutic Use Exemptions and the relaunch of the UCI whistleblower programme. 

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


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