LAUSANNE: Olympic leaders stopped short on Sunday of imposing a blanket ban on Russia from next month’s Rio de Janeiro Games over the nation’s doping record, leaving individual global sports federations to decide which athletes should be cleared to compete.

The decision, announced after a three-hour meeting of the International Olympic Committee’s executive board and less than two weeks before the Rio Games opens on Aug 5, follows the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) call for a blanket ban in response to the independent McLaren report that found evidence of state-sponsored doping by Russian athletes at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

IOC president Thomas Bach said the body stopped short of an outright ban to protect the rights of clean Russian competitors hoping to take part at the Games which start in two weeks.

But an extraordinary set of checks have been put in place and individuals had to assume “collective responsibility” given the extent of Russia’s cheating, Bach said.

“I think in this way, we have balanced on the one hand, the desire and need for collective responsibility versus the right to individual justice of every individual athlete,” Bach said on a conference call.

“In this way we are protecting the clean athletes because of the high criteria we set. This may not please everybody, but this result is one which is respecting the rules of justice and all the clean athletes all over the world.”

WADA and 14 national anti-doping organisations had urged the IOC to impose a blanket ban in the wake of the damning McLaren report, but former Olympic fencing champion Bach said that Russian sportsmen and women “will have to clear the highest hurdle to take part in the Olympics”.

‘CONFUSING MESS’

The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) said the IOC had failed to show leadership with its decision.

“Many, including clean athletes and whistleblowers, have demonstrated courage and strength in confronting a culture of state-supported doping and corruption within Russia,” USADA chief Travis Tygart said.

“Disappointingly, however, in response to the most important moment for clean athletes and the integrity of the Olympic Games, the IOC has refused to take decisive leadership. The decision regarding Russian participation and the confusing mess left in its wake is a significant blow to the rights of clean athletes.”

Russia’s Sports Minister, Vitaly Mutko, said the decision cleared the way for Russian participation.

“I hope that the majority of international federations will very promptly confirm the right of [Russian] sportspeople in different types of sports to take part in the Olympic Games,” Mutko said.

The International Tennis Federation wasted no time in clearing the seven Russian players nominated for Rio. The ITF said the players have been subject to a rigorous anti-doping programme outside Russia, which it considers sufficient to meet the IOC’s requirements.

Russia’s track and field athletes have already been banned by the IAAF, the sport’s governing body, a decision that was upheld Thursday by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, and was accepted by the IOC again on Sunday.

Separately, an IOC ethics commission ruled that 800m runner Yuliya Stepanova, who turned whistleblower on doping in Russian athletics, could not go to Rio even as a neutral.

TWO-WEEK TIMELINE

Russian Olympic Committee president Alexander Zhukov presented his case to the IOC board at the beginning of Sunday’s meeting, promising full cooperation with investigations and guaranteeing “a complete and comprehensive restructuring of the Russian anti-doping system”.

Following a conference call, the IOC executive implemented a rigorous set of criteria facing each Russian Olympic hopeful.

For individuals to be allowed to compete at Rio they must have a spotless international record on drug testing, the IOC said, adding athletes who have been sanctioned in the past for doping will not be eligible.

The IOC had said this week that it would not organise or give patronage to any sports event in Russia and that no member of the Russian Sports Ministry implicated in the McLaren report would be accredited for Rio.

It also ordered the immediate re-testing of all Russian athletes from the Sochi Olympics.

This multi-layered screening process must be carried out for the more than 300 athletes nominated for Rio by the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) before the Games.

“This is a very ambitious timeline, but we had no choice,” Bach said.

Russians “have to clear the highest hurdles in order to have chance to compete in the Olympic games,” he added.

Russia faces a possible ban from the Paralympic Games. Citing evidence in McLaren’s report of doping among Russian Paralympic athletes, the International Paralympic Committee said Friday it will decide next month whether to exclude the country from the Sept 7-18 event in Rio.

Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2016

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