More than 240 banned substances to be tested for

By Peter Gambaccini
Photo courtesy Shutterstock

The anti-doping laboratory at the Olympic and Paralympic Games in London has a staff of more than 1000 people who'll test over 400 samples per day for more than 240 banned substances, BBC Sports tells us. By the time both gatherings have ended, 6000 samples will have been taken and more than half the competitors will have been tested – including every entrant who earns a medal.

British sprinter Marlon Devonish, a 4x100 relay gold medallist in Athens in 2004, opines, “Winning an Olympic medal is the best feeling in the world and as an athlete it's so important to know that anyone who stands on the podium has got there through their own hard work and dedication, not by doping.” Paralympian Graham Edmunds asserts, “I'm confident that everything possible is being done to catch drug cheats at London 2012 and that makes these Games really special.”

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