Russian Doping Scandal = BIG Olympic Threat

[LatinXTC]

"Brilliantova"...could make this up.

I'm not too hopeful the CAS will side with the IAAF, sadly.

Yea neither am I. If the CAS, IAAF and IOC don't stand up to Russia now and let them get away with this BS again, then they're never going to clean up their act. They will continue to be a doping problem.

[olympian]

Here's another one:

http://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1039231/russian-rowing-federation-to-appeal-quadruple-sculls-crews-rio-2016-ban-to-cas

[Quaker2001]

As the kids say.. ****'s about to get real...

Antidoping Officials Are Expected to Ask That Russia Be Barred From Rio Olympics

[TheOtherRob]

Wow

I kind of assumed he'd have trouble getting hold of any real evidence, as is usually the case with anything involving Russia.

If he's managed to show these claims are true then the build up to Rio is going to be crazy.

Edited July 17, 2016 by Rob.

[TheOtherRob]

It starts already:

A sensible person could see through the ridiculous politicization of sport and using sports orgs as geopolitical weapons.

Canadian Russophobes are acting as hatchet men for US elite and its going to destroy international sports as we know it.

It will likely be like the bs Letvienko report, full of accusations, and "probably" with no real evidence just to try to cast a shadow of guilt.

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=971604&page=214

[Faster]

Well it is a Canadian athlete that is leading the charge on that front too. Beckie Scott. Who ironically was denied gold in Salt Lake City by two Russian dopers.

This begs the question, if there is proven wide-spread doping in Sochi, what do the federations and the IOC do about Russian results?

Also the deadline for entries is tomorrow. The federations would either have to allow quotas to go unused or the IOC would have to allow late entries.

Edited July 17, 2016 by Faster

[StefanMUC]

I doubt we'll see a reallocation of quotas. Simply because Bach will find a way not to anger his buddy Vlad and talk about "respect for individuals athletes that are innocent until proven guilty" etc etc blabla. Maybe a few officials would be banned, but not athletes.

The atmosphere in Rio will be heavily poisoned either way, and the cowardly IOC only has to blame itself for willingly closing their eyes for years and years.

[TheOtherRob]

A film portraying banned Russian athletes as victims of a political smear campaign will be shown on state television on Monday, the same day on which an international report on Russian doping is published.

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/jul/17/banned-russian-athletes-smear-campaign-documentary-rio-olympics-2016?CMP=share_btn_tw

[Nacre]

I wish the USA would stay out of this. For the sake of scoring a few easy domestic political points, we are going to end up sabotaging the effort to clean up sports by turning this into a NATO vs Russia issue.

Edited July 18, 2016 by Nacre

[baron-pierreIV]

Russian athletes banned!! Mutko and Putin commit mutual seppuko/harakiri acts!!

400 spots have become available in the Olympic Village.

[Faster]

I wish the USA would stay out of this. For the sake of scoring a few easy domestic political points, we are going to end up sabotaging the effort to clean up sports by turning this into a NATO vs Russia issue.

Why shouldn't we? Russian desires for sporting glory comes from a desire for prestige. The same thing that drove the GDR and the Soviet Union to their state-sponsored programs decades ago. Canadian and American athletes are put through some of the most stringent anti-doping regiments of any countries. This is about clean sport and a fight against systematic, state-sponsored doping. And who better to go after Russia then countries that have had their own scandals and let stars and idols flap in the wind when they got caught. Also look at the list, Japan is apart of the group asking for a total ban.

This is not about a rogue coach or cadre of athletes. THIS IS STATE-SPONSORED DOPING. THE SUCCESSOR OF THE KGB, THE FSB, WAS INVOLVED. THIS IS NOT SOMETHING THAT CAN BE SWEPT UNDER THE RUG. If Canadian, American, European and Japanese organizations and athletes have to step up and demand respect for fair, clean sport. So F-CKING BE IT.

From a Canadian perspective, our organizations need to be fighting for the memory of Cheryl Gibson and Nancy Garapick who should have been Olympic champions but were denied by the last famous instance of state-sponsored doping.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgyqAD5Z6_A

Edited July 18, 2016 by Faster

[TheOtherRob]

T - 10 minutes

[Martijn]

Liveblog: http://www.insidethegames.biz/articles/1039725/release-of-mclaren-report-into-sochi-2014-doping-allegations

Report: http://www.insidethegames.biz/media/file/37086/Independent%20Commission%20report.pdf (PDF)

[TheOtherRob]

The report has been released and it's even worse and goes even deeper than the NYT article allegations! Russian sport is toast. It can't survive this, nor can Mutko.

Key points:

• The Moscow Laboratory operated a state-dictated system for doped athletes, that the Sochi lab operated a sample-swapping methodology to allow Russian athletes to dope at the 2014 Winter Olympics, and that the Ministry of Sport oversaw the process, with participation from the Russian security service.
• McLaren: “the system was set up following the 2010 Olympics, and was in place until 2014. It allowed the transformation of a positive result to a negative one, overseen by the Deputy Minister of Sport. The Ministry of Sport, Rusada and the FSB were involved in this process”.
• McLaren confirms that positive tests “in every sports discipline” were passed to the Deputy Minister of Sport, Yuri Nagornykh. McLaren adds that Nagornykh “decided who would benefit from a cover up and who would not be protected.”
• McLaren also says Russia manipulated samples during 2013 world athletics and 2015 world swimming championships.
• McLaren says that the investigation has proved “beyond a reasonable doubt” that this took place, assisted by the FSB, the Russian federal security service. McLaren adds that evidence of tampering on the inside of bottle caps was present in all samples tested.
• McLaren has said that the report’s key findings have been proven “beyond a reasonable doubt”, and that the evidence is “verifiable”. “I have unwavering confidence in the report”, he adds.
• "Russian athletes from the vast majority of summer and winter Olympic sports benefited from the Disappearing Positive Methodology"

Edited July 18, 2016 by Rob.

[Quaker2001]

I wish the USA would stay out of this. For the sake of scoring a few easy domestic political points, we are going to end up sabotaging the effort to clean up sports by turning this into a NATO vs Russia issue.

Okay, so if not the US, then who should lead this charge? I seriously doubt they're doing this solely for political reasons. How will sports be cleaned up if someone doesn't take the lead on this?

[TheOtherRob]

[Martijn]

Statement of the International Olympic Committee on WADA report

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has today received the World Anti-Doping Agency’s “Independent Person Report”. The IOC will now carefully study the complex and detailed allegations, in particular with regard to the Russian Ministry of Sport.

“The findings of the report show a shocking and unprecedented attack on the integrity of sport and on the Olympic Games. Therefore, the IOC will not hesitate to take the toughest sanctions available against any individual or organisation implicated,” IOC President Thomas Bach said.

In the immediate short term, the IOC Executive Board (EB) will convene in a telephone conference tomorrow to take its first decisions, which may include provisional measures and sanctions with regard to the Olympic Games Rio 2016.

[Faster]

PARALYMPIC SPORT?????? Are you f-cking joking me??? I guess nothing is untainted in this world. And curling? Who needs to dope for curling? WTF

At the very least I expect the weightlifting and canoe/kayak federations to ban Russia.

[Nacre]

Why shouldn't we? Russian desires for sporting glory comes from a desire for prestige. The same thing that drove the GDR and the Soviet Union to their state-sponsored programs decades ago. Canadian and American athletes are put through some of the most stringent anti-doping regiments of any countries. This is about clean sport and a fight against systematic, state-sponsored doping. And who better to go after Russia then countries that have had their own scandals and let stars and idols flap in the wind when they got caught.

That is not how it will be portrayed in Russia. Russian state media will show this as "proof" that Russia is a victim of a conspiracy by the UK, Canada and the USA: three Anglo countries that have been her longtime enemies. They would do that anyway, of course. But giving them a few threads to weave into a web of conspiracy will help convince moderate Russians that Putin is right.

Japan may be in favor of a ban, but none of Russia's allies are. It will be a disastrous outcome if this develops into a political conflict like 1980 & 1984.

To be clear, I am not suggesting that Russia escape punishment. But WADA and the IOC have to lead the charge for reform, not individual countries who happen to dislike Russia.

Edited July 18, 2016 by Nacre

[Hansfromdenmark]

What about team sports? Is it possible that other countries will get a late invitation to take Russias place ind handball, volleyball etc?

In handball the international handball federation has before shown that they don´t care about who is the natural country to take a place, when Germany get invited for a few years ago, even they wasn´t in competition with that team who got expelled (cant remember the details). It was then clearly for marketing reasons.
I think of course that is a stupid way to go, but if Russia will get banned here, who will take their place in womens handball? Denmark won gold in 96, 00 and 04, but unfortunately missed qualification Could the international handball federation choose to take us in? Or will the IOC refuse that. We did not play Russia directly in the qualification, but some countries qualified in the World Cup, and other in direct qualification matches later on. So how do they choose...
Will we have to wait and see. Perhaps the teamsport will be allowed under the IOC flag?

[baron-pierreIV]

Actually, I was wrong...probably like 800 beds will become available at the various Villages in Rio as athletes, coaches and support staff won't be coming. I think only judges and officials in the various federations will be coming. The Sochi delegation should also be there to give their wrap-up report on 2014 -- which of course, will probably be rejected and will need to be amended. I wonder how the IOC tells the Sochi delegation -- your Official Report needs work.

It was like the turn-down of the Beijing 2008 report and for which the Chinese just made a few cosmetic changes and turned in something that was 95% of the initial submission.

I wonder how FIFA officials will now be treated in Russia with 720 day to go before Russia 2018 starts.

So Euro 2019 is also in jeopardy. If Paris wins 2024, they could maybe pick up the slack and stage 2019 (or even 2023 -- and use those as test events); perhaps leasing the hotel space at Disneyland-Paris to serve as a temporary Village in case the 2024 Village won't be ready for a EG 2019 or even for EG 2023.

Edited July 18, 2016 by baron-pierreIV

[zekekelso]

Pssst.... before anyone gets too outraged. Russian athletes aren't the only ones doping. They just have the most "state support."

[Faster]

There are no indications of state sponsored doping in other countries though. Yes almost every country has had instances of doping at one point or another. But it is not at this level of government involvement and state sponsorship.

WADA and the IOC won't act unless there is enough pressure to bear. Dick Pound, the former head of WADA, has even said there isn't enough will to clean-up sport.

[baron-pierreIV]

I think the IOC will let the respective federations decide who, how much of the Russian delegations they want to ban -- and whom else the various sports can rustle up to fill the vacated spots. That's the only way to do it at this late stage. I'd hate to be working on the ROCOG Village Organizing Committee. They will be working 23 hours/day from now until when the newly scrambled delegations will arrive.

[nykfan845]

I think the IOC will let the respective federations decide who, how much of the Russian delegations they want to ban -- and whom else the various sports can rustle up to fill the vacated spots. That's the only way to do it at this late stage. I'd hate to be working on the ROCOG Village Organizing Committee. They will be working 23 hours/day from now until when the newly scrambled delegations will arrive.

The only way? Nah. IOC could totally do a blanket ban. Leaving it up to respective federations to form their own processes on approving Russian athletes is a non-starter so clsoe to the games.