CAS receive mass appeals from russians against their bans
RIO DE JANEIRO: At least 18 Russian athletes made late appeals to the international sports tribunal against being excluded from the Rio Olympics over Russia’s state-organised doping, the court said.
Three Russian swimmers, a wrestler and the Russian weightlifting federation already have a queue of appeals being handled by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
CAS said in a statement that canoeist Andrey Kraytor and 17 Russian rowers had also made appeals to the tribunal who are holding special hearings in Rio to handle the cases.
Russian has been at the centre of a new doping storm after an independent investigator, Canadian lawyer Richard McLaren, said in a report that there had been widespread state-backed doping in Russia.
About 30 Russians have now appealed against exclusions, directly or indirectly, from the Olympics ordered by international federations and the International Olympic Committee since the report was released.
CAS said they would announce whether more hearings would be needed in the case of swimmers Vladimir Morozov and Nikita Lobintsev.
Another appeal by Yulia Efimova was adjourned and the case of wrestler Viktor Lebedev would follow, it added.
The Russian weightlifting federation have appealed against their suspension by the International Weightlifting Federation over the doping. They have said that if this is successful they will start a new case on behalf of eight weightlifters banned from the Olympics. — AFP