RUSSIAN CHEATS HAVE GOT AWAY WITH IT... AGAIN

The man who brought down Lance Armstrong insists ALL Russian athletes should have been banned and accuses WADA of overseeing a broken system

THE man who brought down Lance Armstrong has condemned Russia’s four-year ban from all major sporting events as inadequate.

A punishment which shocked the world well beyond the confines of sport failed to impress US anti-doping chief executive Travis Tygart.

He did not need to hear the World Anti-doping Agency admit that, incredibly, Russia could still qualify for the 2022 World Cup and compete in Qatar on a “neutral” basis.

Nor that Russia can still not only compete in next summer’s Euro 2020 finals, but host one of the groups in St Petersburg, as UEFA is not defined as a “major event organisation” in regards to rulings on antidoping breaches. The headline announcement, that WADA had stopped short of imposing a blanket ban on all participation by Russian athletes, was quite enough for Tygart (below).

“To allow Russia to escape a complete ban is yet another devastating blow to clean athletes, the integrity of sport and the rule of law,” he said.

“And, in turn, the reaction by all those who value sport should be nothing short of a revolt against this broken system to force reform.”

Russia has been found guilty of a cover-up of sport’s worst drugs scandal, of falsifying lab data linked to its state-sponsored cheating at events, which included the

London Olympics and Paralympics.

Even their prime minister Dmitry Medvedev admits it is “impossible to deny” that “significant doping problems still exist” in the country he presides over.

Yet, rather than bin them off, the day ended with the only definitive ruling being that Russia’s flag and anthem would not be allowed at such global showpieces as the 2020 Olympics and 2022 football World Cup.

Tygart said: “WADA promised the world back in 2018 that if Russia failed yet again to live up to its agreements, it would use the toughest sanction under the rules. Yet, here we go again. WADA says one thing and does something entirely different.

“There is no disputing that Russia has committed the most intentional, deep and broad level of corruption on the entire sports world that has put money over morals, abuse over health and corruption over the Olympic values and all athletes’ dreams.

“Now clean athletes, sports fans and sponsors are having to suffer through another horrendous Groundhog Day of Russian corruption and domination.”

The flip side to the argument is that it is only right each case is judged on its own merit. Listen to Howard Thomas, former executive vicepresident of Russian rugby.

“Rugby players in Russia are not the problem, they are a casualty of this decision,” he said. “This is heartbreaking for some really fantastic people, their dreams have been killed for the next four years.”

Tygart, whose anti-doping crusade has also claimed the scalp of disgraced running coach Alberto Salazar (below, centre) , sees the bigger picture.

When Russia’s athletics federation was suspended in 2015, track and field boss Seb Coe described it as a “shameful wake-up call”, a reminder that “cheating at any level will not be tolerated”. Four years on, Tygart said: “Russia continues to flaunt the world’s antidoping rules, kick clean athletes in the gut and poke WADA in the eye – and get away with it time and again.”

The Russian anti-doping agency (RUSADA) has 21 days to lodge an appeal.

Sports fans are having to suffer through another Groundhog Day