UK SHOCK AT RUSSIA DOPE BAN ESCAPE
THE head of UK Sport expressed her shock and disappointment last night after 28 Russians banned by the International Olympic Committee over their country’s state- sponsored doping scandal had their sentences scrapped.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld the appeals of the athletes who had been given lifetime Olympic bans.
Liz Nicholl, UK Sport’s chief executive, who felt the IOC had acted correctly in imposing the highest sanctions on the Russians, said: ‘I was surprised to hear it. It’s disappointing but it has to be dealt with by the IOC and the Court of Arbitration for Sport.’
In a major blow to the IOC, the development highlighted the difficulty in turning evidence of Russian cheating into clear- cut doping cases against individuals.
The CAS verdicts, which saw 11 more Russians have their punishments watered down, were confusing. Some athletes in the same events were cleared while others were found ‘sufficiently guilty’.
The reprieves will certainly be used by Russia as an indication that the bans, and the investigation by Professor Richard McLaren that prompted them, were part of a western conspiracy. The IOC were slow to act against Russia, falling short of a blanket ban of athletes at the 2016 Rio Olympics — unlike the International Paralympic Committee, who did impose such a ban.
Among those cleared of cheating at Sochi 2014 were men’s Olympic skeleton champion Aleksander Tretyakov and women’s European and World Cup skeleton champion Elena Nikitina. Three of Russia’s second unit in the 2014 men’s fourman bob had bans upheld, meaning Great Britain’s upgrade to bronze is confirmed.
United States Anti- Doping Agency chief executive Travis Tygart blamed the IOC for Russia’s let- off, saying they had failed to act ‘swiftly’. He said: ‘The whole sorry mess truly stinks and the nightmare continues for clean athletes. This must change.’
Meanwhile, UK Sport confirmed that it is to bankroll para taekwondo, para badminton, sport climbing, karate and BMX freestyle for the first time in the buildup to the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.
Badminton — the first sport stripped of all its public and National Lottery cash last year — will win back some money under a new funding stream for athletes with immediate medal potential.