The World athletics governing body is accused of supressing a survey which revealed a third of top athletes admitted cheating, according to the Sunday Times.
The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) is said to have stopped publication of the study and prevented its authors from speaking about it.
The research was carried out in 2011, when hundreds of athletes from around the world apparently told academics at the University of Tubingen in Germany that they had violated anti-doping rules.
In a statement to the Sunday Times, the university is quoted as saying: “The IAAF’s delaying publication for so long without good reason is a serious encroachment on the freedom of publication.”
Researchers compiled the information from athletes who competed at the world championships in Daegu, South Korea, four years ago. The results reportedly show that 29-34 per cent of the 1,800 competitors had confessed to using banned performance-enhancing techniques in the previous 12 months.
The study – financed by World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) – raises more questions about doping in athletics at a time when the sport is under great scrutiny.
“These findings demonstrate that doping is remarkably widespread among elite athletes, and remains largely unchecked despite current biological testing programmes,” they concluded.
The IAAF is quoted as saying: “Discussions are ongoing with the research team and Wada regarding publication.”
When asked about the study, lead author Rolf Ulrich said: “The IAAF is blocking it. I think they are stakeholders with Wada and they just blocked the whole thing.”