More Russians banned in mounting Rio toll

IJF approves Russia team

LAUSANNE, July 26, (Agencies): Seven athletes including a canoeing gold medallist became the latest Russian competitors to be banned from next month’s Rio Olympics after an explosive report revealed state-run doping across Russian sport.

Five canoeists and two in modern pentathlon were barred, taking the number of Russians banned from the Games — which start in just 10 days — to at least 20 since Sunday.

The bans followed a controversial decision at the weekend by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) not to suspend all Russian competitors, instead leaving it up to each sport to decide what to do. The IOC has faced fierce criticism from antidoping leaders over the move, including accusations that it failed to show leadership in the battle for drug-free sport.

IOC president Thomas Bach insisted the unprecedented eligibility criteria put in place for Russians had teeth, with the country’s athletes having to clear “the highest hurdles” before going to the Games, which start on Aug 5.

International Canoe Federation (ICF) secretary general Simon Toulson issued a strong rebuke to suspected dopers.

“If you step out of line you won’t make the start line,” he said in a statement.

The ICF said it had taken “swift action to remove five Russian canoe sprint athletes from the Rio Olympic Games following the release of additional information naming those implicated by the McLaren report”.

The report by Canadian law professor Richard McLaren for the World AntiDoping Agency (WADA) detailed an elaborate doping system in Russia directed by the sports ministry that affected more than 30 sports.

The banned five included Alexey Korovashkov, a five-time world champion who won a bronze medal in London four years ago, and Alexander Dyachenko, who took gold in a doubles kayak sprint.

“This is a bitter blow for the Olympic movement and we are saddened that our sport is implicated. We have taken swift action and removed all offending athletes where doping evidence exists,” said Toulson.

“The ICF will continue its strong zero-

McLaren

tolerance stance and remove all athletes that contravene its rules in anyway.”

Modern pentathlon’s governing body said two more Russians nominated for Rio — Maksim Kustov and Ilia Frolov — had been implicated in the McLaren report and “are no longer eligible to compete at the 2016 Olympic Games”.

The report linked both to the so-called “Disappearing Positive Methodology”, meaning their positive drug tests at a Moscow laboratory in 2014 were never reported, according to the WADA report.

With the Rio Olympics fast approaching sports federations have precious little time to deal with Russian competitors, some of whom are already in Brazil.

In addition to the ban on Russia’s entire track and field team over doping, seven swimmers, two weightlifters, a wrestler and three rowers have all also been barred.

Russia’s rowing federation said it would appeal. Four-time world breaststroke champion Yulia Efimova announced plans on Monday to also appeal her ban at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). LILLE, France, July 26, (AFP): Senegal international midfielder Younousse Sankhare has joined Lille on a four-year contract from fellow Ligue 1 side Guingamp, the buying club announced on Tuesday.

France-born Sankhare, who started his career with Paris Saint-Germain, spent the past three seasons with Guingamp and scored six goals last year to help the Brittany club in their battle against relegation.

“I’m very happy to be here, I received an excellent welcome. I’m looking forward to meeting my new team-mates and above all playing. For an ambitious player like me, (Lille) is the perfect club,” Sankhare told the club’s official website.

Matthieu Reeb, CAS secretary general, told AFP in an email it had yet to receive the appeal. The court and federations face a race against the clock to manage a flurry of Russia doping cases before the opening ceremony.

Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko — a key figure in the McLaren report who has been banned from Rio — has voiced confidence that the “majority” of the country’s 387-member team would be declared eligible for Rio.

In some rare good news for Russia, the International Shooting Sport Federation said that all 18 competitors nominated by Russia had been cleared for Rio because they had no positive drug tests on their record and were not mentioned in the McLaren report. The International Rowing federation (FISA) announced on Tuesday that 22 of 28 Russian rowers have been banned from competing in the Rio Games, based on criteria fixed by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) over statesponsored doping in Russia.

With just six rowers still eligible, Russia can only compete with one boat in Brazil, a men’s coxless four, FISA said.

Meanwhile, the International Judo Federation says it has approved Russia’s judo team to compete at the Olympics.

Federations are required to examine the drug-testing history of Russian Olympic athletes, and to check if they were implicated in the alleged doping cover-up involving government officials.

The IJF says that it “continues to support the participation of all Russian athletes qualified for the Rio Olympic Games” and that they were all “tested a number of times” ahead of the Olympics.

The list of 11 Russian athletes approved by the IJF must now be submitted to an arbitrator from the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The IJF is widely seen as close to Russia on sports policy issues. Its honorary president is Russian President Vladimir Putin. In another development, international sailing federation World Sailing said on Tuesday it had provisionally confirmed that six Russian competitors could compete in the Rio Olympics.

World Sailing said in a statement on its website that Pavel Sozykin was denied eligibility for the Rio games because of the findings of the McLaren report commissioned by the World Anti-doping Agency.

Fellow Russian competitors Stefania Elfutina, Maxim Oberemko, Lyudmila Dmitrieva, Alisa Kirilyuk, Sergey Komissarov and Denis Gribanov can however take part in the Rio games, the statement said.

See Also Pages 38 & 39

Dinesh Chandimal caught from behind by wicketkeeper Peter Nevill 10 minutes before lunch.

“I think it was a good toss to lose, just to see how that wicket was going to play. I thought if we bowl well, which we did, we would get a few wickets early,” Hazlewood told reporters.

Left-arm spinner Steve O’Keefe claimed the prized wicket of Mathews, caught at first slip by his opposite number Smith.

Debutant Dhananjaya de Silva scored a battling 24 but only four other Sri Lankans made it into double figures.

Even though he only bowled three overs, Nathan Lyon took three Sri Lankan wickets to vindicate Smith’s decision to pick both him and O’Keefe — who picked up two scalps in only his third Test.

Both have been working with Sri Lanka’s record-breaking spinner Muttiah Muralitharan in the build-up to the series and his influence appeared to be paying early dividends.

“I think the spinners are going to come into it (the match) a lot more. They (Sri Lanka) obviously have got some quality spinners. First-innings runs are going to be very crucial for us,” Hazlewood said.

Australia were soon in trouble themselves in their first innings, losing both openers cheaply.

Vice-captain David Warner went for a duck, surviving for just four deliveries before dragging Nuwan Pradeep onto the stumps after being out of action for six weeks with a broken left index finger.

Joe Burns made only three before being bowled by the veteran Rangana Herath, leaving Australia wobbling on seven for two.

But Smith and Khawaja steadily went about staging a recovery and by the close, Australia were only 51 runs adrift with eight wickets in hand.

Khawaja has so far hit four boundaries in his 54-ball knock while Smith had three fours as he faced 46 deliveries.