Drug cheats facing jail time

China will this year make doping in sport a criminal offense, with athletes found to have broken the law facing jail time.

China's sports ministry and top judicial authority are drafting guidelines on the handling of doping cases as the nation gets tougher on cheats.

"We are nearing the end of our study and research into a judicial interpretation of anti-doping. It will be published in 2019, probably in early 2019. Those guilty of doping will face criminal punishments," said Gou Zhongwen, director of China's General Administration of Sport at a national sports meeting last Friday.