Spain's legislation will permit drug-testing of athletes between 6am and 11pm in line with World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules, said Economy Minister Elena Salgado, who was standing in for Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega who is ill.

Previously, Spain had permitted testing between 8am and 11pm.

Doubts over Spain 's full compliance with WADA's out-of-competition testing rules was one of the issues raised by an International Olympic Committee (IOC) Evaluation Commission after it visited Madrid to inspect its 2016 bid project.

Salgado said: "We believe we have very adequate doping legislation which has been pioneering up to now but the IOC made some specific recommendations."

Officials hope it will help Madrid's slim hopes of beating being awarded the Games when the IOC votes at its Session in Copenhagen on October 2.

The other bidding cities are Chicago, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo. 

Salgado said: "With this initiative, the Government wants to boost Madrid 's 2016 candidacy so that it can go to Copenhagen with the approval of all the international bodies involved in the fight against doping."

The Government pointed out that although the IOC had raised the issue, WADA in August had listed Spain among the countries that fully complied with the anti-doping code and among the few that apply out-of-competition controls.

Spain's reputation was badly tarnished by cycling's Operation Puerto doping scandal in 2006 when police raided two clinics in Madrid that were allegedly at the center of a blood-doping ring.

More than 50 cyclists and several doctors and cycling team officials were implicated, but no one was formally charged.