WADA ‘disappointed’ by IOC decision on Russia

Paula Radcliffe has declared the International Olympic Committee’s refusal to implement a blanket ban on Russian Federation from the Rio Games as a “sad day for clean sport”. Still, the message it sends, “is incomprehensible and will undoubtedly deter whistleblowers in the future from coming forward”, said Travis Tygart, CEO of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

Four-time Olympic rowing champion Sir Matthew Pinsent accused the IOC of a “cop out” while former heptathlete Kelly Sotherton said Rio 2016 would be “remembered in history for the bottling of the IOC”.

The IOC ultimately favored “individual justice” over “collective responsibility” – words Bach used repeatedly to describe the moral calculations of this first-of-its-kind judgment. Also said, Russia has not been banned from the Olympic sports federations, their athletes can take part in Rio de Janeiro after sports federations consents.

“We had to balance the collective responsibility and the individual justice to which every human being and athlete is entitled to”, IOC President Thomas Bach said.

“An athlete should not suffer and be sanctioned for a system in which he was not implicated and where he can show that he was not implicated”, he argued.

– The IOC’s rejection of whistleblower Yulia Stepanova’s request to compete under a neutral flag may have been academic, since Stepanova was injured and no sure thing to line up.

The IOC on Sunday made a decision to allow Russian athletes to the August 5-21 Games in Brazil if they were approved by their respective worldwide sports federations under strict criteria. “It is about the individual athlete”. This is what we have to consider.

– The IOC’s decision to let the 28 summer sports determine the eligibility of their athletes puts the federations in a almost impossible situation.

“I’m just really disappointed”. Other sports, including gymnastics, judo, triathlon and fencing, are likely to be sympathetic to the Russian cause, while weightlifting, in which a number of Russians have failed tests, may act more harshly.

Steel said the International Olympic Committee has failed to show adequate leadership in protecting the integrity of sport. It has already started suspension proceedings against Russian Federation following the McLaren report.

“Many worldwide federations will have neither the time nor capacity to make the quick and clear decisions necessary let alone do it in a consistent way”, he said.

The global federations of each sport have been left to determine whether Russian athletes can compete in their respective events.

The IOC also said Russian Federation is barred from entering for the Rio Games any athlete who has ever been sanctioned for doping.

Yesterday’s ruling was greeted with joy in Russian Federation, whose sports minister Vitaly Mutko, who is alleged to have been complicit in his country’s doping programme, urged each sport to “very promptly confirm” the right of his nation’s athletes to compete in Rio.