Russian track and field athletes to remain suspended from Rio Olympics

The IAAF has ignored Russia’s claims that it has cleaned up its act since its track and field athletes were first suspended, and for good reason: There is no way those claims can be trusted, not at this point anyway.

Unless the IAAF reinstates Russia’s membership, all of the nation’s track and field athletes will be barred from competing in this year Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

Speaking in St Petersburg, President Vladimir Putin insisted there was no state-sponsored doping in Russian Federation.

Russia’s track and field athletes will miss the Rio Olympics after the sport’s governing body – the International Association of Athletics Federations – opted to uphold a ban on Friday.

Leader of Russia’s hammer throwing team Sergei Litvinov commented on the ban, saying that he “expected such a decision and was mentally prepared for it”.

It follows a warning issued by Australia’s newly crowned Olympic champion Jared Tallent in Melbourne that the Rio Games would be tarnished if Russian athletes were allowed to compete.

On Wednesday, a new WADA report revealed 52 failed tests since then, and stories of extraordinary attempts to avoid, obstruct or intimidate drug testers. I will go to the human rights court. In addition, some athletes would report their whereabouts as military cities, where “athletes know that special permission is needed to gain access”, the report stated, noting that “athletes provide this location even if they aren’t there, to deter test planning”.

Rishe predicts today’s ruling from the IAAF could have a lasting impact as the fate of the Russian athletes now rests with the IOC.

The federation had scheduled the vote for June so that, if the ban were to be lifted, Russian athletes would have a reasonable chance to register Olympic qualifying standards before the July 11 cut-off.

According to the Associated Press, Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko called the idea “absurd” and said, because Russia’s drug testing program has been overseen by foreign organizations since November, that puts them outside the Russian system and therefore eligibile to compete. “The entire team should not be responsible for those who committed the violation”.

The IAAF said it has brought in a new rule which will allow Russian athletes who have been training in other countries under more rigorous anti-doping regimes to appeal to compete at the Olympics as independent entries. “Banning me and my fellow athletes from the Olympics would not just be devastating to us, but would also set back our efforts to inspire young people”.

“The crack in the door, or the opening to apply for this is quite narrow”, Andersen said, “so there won’t be many athletes that will manage to get through the crack of that door because it’s clearly, they have to demonstrate that they have been subject to a credible anti-doping control system and that they are not tainted by the system in Russian Federation”.