Russia to appeal Paralympic ban

Moscow: The Russian Paralympic Committee will appeal in the Swiss Federal Court on Monday against the Court of Arbitration for Sport’s decision to uphold a blanket ban on their athletes for next month’s Rio Games. “The appeal has been launched in the Swiss court,” the Interfax news agency quoted RPC president Vladimir Lukin as saying. Earlier this week the CAS, sport’s highest tribunal, rejected an RPC appeal against the suspension that was handed out by the International Paralympic Committee because of a state- sponsored sports doping programme. The Federal Court can only overturn the CAS ruling on the basis of a procedural mistake and not on the merits of the case. — Reuters