Summer sports seek ‘individual’ not blanket ban on Russians
Published 8:05 am Tuesday, July 19, 2016
Summer Olympic sports federations said on Tuesday they are ready to deal with “individual cases” of Russian doping, rather than endorse a total ban on the Russian team for the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
The Association of Summer Olympic International Federations, which represents the 28 sports in the games, said it recognized the “gravity and extent of the doping activities in Russia” as detailed in Monday’s report by World Anti-Doping Agency investigator Richard McLaren.
The report, which accused Russia’s sports ministry of overseeing doping of the country’s Olympic athletes on a vast scale, listed 20 summer sports as being part of the cheating conspiracy.
WADA and other anti-doping officials urged the International Olympic Committee to consider the unprecedented step of excluding the entire Russian contingent from the Rio Games. The IOC executive board was meeting by teleconference later Tuesday to weight its options.
Any IOC decisions may not be definitive, as the Court of Arbitration for Sport is scheduled to rule on Thursday on Russia’s appeal against the IAAF ban on its track and field athletes from competing in Rio.