Established at the beginning of this year, IBIS collates alerts and information on manipulation through betting on sport.

The intelligence-sharing digital platform will enable BWF and its 180 members associations to access an extensive network of monitoring and data-sharing across sports, event owners and the major sports-betting entities.

Through this, IBIS hopes to safeguard sports from the threat connected to illegal sports betting; support international federations and multi-sport event organisers with intelligence and information exchange; and create a framework for transparency, confidentiality and trust across all users.

The BWF joins the seven Olympic winter sports federations and a growing number of Olympic Summer Sports Federations, including basketball, rugby, tennis, cycling and volleyball, which have already joined IBIS in view of the upcoming Games in Rio de Janeiro.

The BWF signed up to IBIS in an effort to fight corruption and illegal betting in sport ahead of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games ©Getty Images


"We are pleased to join with IOC and other international federations in the fight against corruption in sport," said BWF President Poul-Erik Høyer.

"We expect IBIS to have a positive impact and we look forward to benefiting from it."

"This is a significant ideal to which we all subscribe - that sport must be played in an environment devoid of illegal betting, match fixing or any other forms of corruption or manipulation - and BWF will continue to do its utmost to uphold this and to spread this philosophy among its global membership."

The BWF was engulfed in a match-fixing scandal just last month after two of the sport's top names were approached to fix matches at the Japan Open in June.

Danes Hans Kristian Vittinghus and Kim Astrup took to the media after allegedly being approached to fix matches during the tournament.

The BWF followed this up with a statement which made assurances that neither player had accepted the offer, before handing the investigation to the police. 

On this occasion, Høyer had stated that "BWF is acutely aware of the threats around match-fixing in general and that badminton, as well as other sports, can be targets for criminal activities related to illegal match fixing and illegal betting activities, which is a problem within our societies.

"It is, however, a very complex and sensitive area that may involve criminal syndicates which are not part of the badminton community, and as such match-fixing becomes a matter for the police authorities.

Hans Kristian Vittinghus is one of two players that claimed to have been approached to fix matches during June's Japan Open ©Getty Images



On the BWF's commitment to IBIS, IOC Sports Director Kit McConnell commented: "The IOC applauds BWF for signing up to the IOC's initiative for clean competitions.

"IBIS will be in place not only for the badminton competitions at the Olympic and Youth Olympic Games, but also for BWF's major tournaments."

"IBIS was successfully in operation for the first time during the Olympic Winter Games in Sochi with all Olympic Winter IFs taking part in the project.

"The objective is now to integrate all Olympic Summer IFs in the run-up to the Olympic Games 2016 in Rio."

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