Because the worldwide governing bodies of individual sports, especially ones with fewer resources, will be hard-pressed to vet so many athletes in the handful of days remaining before the August 5 games opening, the integrity of every Russian competitor will now be tainted, even those who compete cleanly.
Advertisement
“It is now time to put all doubts aside: the Russian team is going to the Olympics”.
“The situation went beyond the legal field as well as common sense”, Putin told the audience, which included numerous banned athletes. “Short-sighted politicians haven’t left sport in peace”, though competition is meant to bring people and nations together, he said.
Russia’s involvement in the Rio Games, however, has been a source of huge embarrassment to Putin and his country.
The McLaren report found that the doping program was developed after the Russian team finished 11th at the 2010 games in Vancouver, its worst performance since the collapse of the Soviet Union. That inquiry also led to the suspension of Russia’s anti-doping agency and Moscow anti-doping laboratory.
“The other sportsmen understand that the quality of their medals will be different”, he told the Russian team.
Russia’s pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva with other Russia’s National Olympic team members walk along the Red Square for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, July 27, 2016.
Any medal won in Rio in the absence of Russian athletes would be worth much less than usual, he added, predicting many victories would be hollow. But on Sunday, the IOC chose not to ban all Russian athletes from Rio, and instead made a decision to require the athletes accused of doping to appeal to worldwide federations, or the governing bodies, of their respective sports to determine whether they can participate.
“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 in response.
But his personal letter to Coe received short shrift, with the IAAF saying in a statement yesterday: “We received a letter from Minister Mutko yesterday requesting a review of Russian athletes”.
The latest doping scandal to rock Olympic and Russian sport was triggered this month by Canadian law professor Richard McLaren whose report for the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) detailed an elaborate doping system directed by the Moscow sports ministry and used in more than 30 sports over four years.
Russian entries to the Olympics must still be examined and upheld by an expert from the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
But he then said responsibility for the crimes of the past should be “personalised, and all conscientious athletes should not be responsible for violations of others”.
Advertisement
An official at Russia’s Synchronised Swimming Federation said the team, famous for its work ethic and technical precision, was training and unavailable for interviews.
