London, Aug 1 (IANS): The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) and United Kingdom Athletics have announced a strict anti-doping programme for the upcoming IAAF World Championships here.

AIU and UKI on Monday revealed in a statement the measures they plan to take prior to and during the August 4-12 event, reports Efe.

"At the heart of the AIU's testing programme will be the collection of more than 600 blood samples prior to the championships for the purpose of continuing to build Athlete Biological Passport (ABP) profiles and to detect prohibited substances, such as human growth hormone (hGH)," the statement said.

During the competition, both organisations will test 600 more urine samples for other prohibited substances, such as EPO and steroids, the statement added.

"What is key to this programme is the significant work that has been done by the unit and its partners in the 10 months leading up to the championships to ensure that athletes competing in London have been part of a robust testing programme," AIU Chair David Howman said.

Over the last 10 months, 2,000 blood samples and 3,000 urine samples have been collected, according to the statement.

The samples collected during the competition will be stored in a safe place for re-testing in the future, the statement added.

AIU and UKI will also hold educational sessions at the athletes' hotels urging competitors to report any irregular conduct.