ALSO INSIDE

Court of Arbitration upholds IOC’s ban of 45 for doping.

■ Without NHL players, men’s hockey lacks star power,

Russia’s desperate attempt to get 45 banned athletes — including several medal favorites — into the Olympics failed just hours before Friday’s opening ceremony.

The International Olympic Committee had banned Russia because of a massive doping scheme at the 2014 Sochi Games, but gave individual athletes the chance to apply for admission to compete as “Olympic Athletes from Russia.” There were 168 Russians who passed the vetting process. Dozens more filed appeals with the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

On Friday, the court upheld the IOC’s right to decide who can compete.

A nti- d oping officials praised the ruling, which is a heavy blow to Russian medal chances.

“That’s it. The story is over,” Russian delegation spokesman Konstant in Vybornov said. Shamil Tarpishchev, a Russian member of the IOC, said the CAS ruling may have been legally correct but he disagreed with the spirit of the ruling.

After two days of hearings, the CAS panel ruled that the commissions that evaluated whether Russian applicants were eligible did not act ina “discriminatory, arbitrary or unfair manner.” CAS Secretary General Matthieu Reeb said the IOC process “could not be described as a sanction but rather as an eligibility decision.”

Olympic and World Anti-Doping Agency officials welcomed the ruling, with the IOC saying the decision “supports the fight against doping and brings clarity for all athletes.”

No U.S. bid until 2030: If the U.S. Olympic Committee is going to bid for the Winter Games soon, it will be a bid for 2030, not 2026.

USOC Chairman Larry Probst ruled out the possibility of bringing the Olympics to Salt Lake City, Denver or Reno two years before the Summer Games return to the United States, in Los Angeles.

“It would make things extremely complicated from a financial standpoint with Los Angeles,” Probst said.

When a U.S. city wins the right to host, the USOC has to rework all its marketing arrangements so the city will be the prime beneficiary of the deals. It’s complex, and tearing up the deal with Los Angeles to add a 2026 host into the mix is considered unworkable.

The USOC has always preferred the idea of 2030, but was keeping doors open for 2026 in case of a repeat of the most recent Summer Games process. The IOC was supposed to award only the 2024 Olympics last September. But after a handful of bids cratered and only two remained — Paris and Los Angeles — the IOC took the unprecedented step of awarding both 2024 and 2028.

If the IOC indicates it wants a similar process with 2026 and 2030, Probst said “we are prepared to participate in those discussions.”

Earlier this week, Salt Lake City said it would try to become the American candidate for a 2030 bid. It would be the favorite in a contest that could also include Denver and Reno, Nevada.

Downhill delay? High winds in the weather forecast could move the Olympic men’s downhill race from its scheduled Sunday slot.

Race director Markus Waldner told team leaders a Monday lunchtime start is the favored backup plan if needed, sandwiched between two runs of the women’s giant slalom.

“This is my message: Be patient and flexible because now the next three days will be tough,” Waldner said Friday after a practice run was affected by gusts of wind.

The weather forced a shortened training run to begin 564 feet (175 meters) lower down the Jeongseon race hill. The downhill start is at 4,495 feet (1,370 meters).

Waldner said conditions Friday were “good enough for training, but not good enough for a race.”