As a part of their Anti-Doping Program the International Handball Federation will start blood testing methods at the Men’s World Championship 2013 in Spain in addition to their previous controls. Those blood testing methods are part of the Athlete’s Biological Passport (ABP), which had already been successfully introduced in other sports. 

The ABP is an electronic record of an athlete's biological values that is developed over time from multiple collections of blood samples. The fundamental principle is based on the monitoring of selected biological parameters over time that will indirectly reveal the effects of doping rather than attempting to detect the doping substance itself. The ABP differs from traditional detection methods by looking for the effects of blood doping rather than detecting the prohibited substances or methods used. 

In close cooperation with the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) the Anti-Doping Unit of the IHF, chaired by Prof. Hosny Ahmed Abdelrahman Ahmed. will introduce the blood testing methods in Spain for the first time. As proposed by WADA , the International Handball Federation is integrating the Athlete Biological Passport into the larger framework of its Anti-Doping Program.

WADA has taken the lead in the development of the Athlete Biological Passport concept. WADA’s Athlete Biological Passport Operating Guidelines were approved by WADA’s Executive Committee and took effect on December 1, 2009. WADA will continue to develop the Athlete Biological Passport, in consultation with stakeholders, by adding new modules.