Rio de janeiro: Six weightlifting medallists from the 2012 London Olympics, including three Russians, have tested positive for doping after their samples were re-examined, the sport’s ruling body said.
Advertisement
On June 27, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the Russian Olympic team before their charter flight departed from Moscow.
Here’s all you need to know about what a cop-out the IOC has committed: Moscow’s minister of sport reacted positively to the ruling, proclaiming that most Russian athletes will indeed qualify to participate – and march into Rio under the Russian flag.
Terekhov says he received a letter from the WTF and that “we were told that all three of our athletes have officially been admitted to compete in the Olympic Games”.
“Today, as never before, we need to stay united and become a family”, the 40-year-old Tetyukhin said, ignoring what he called “provocations addressed at our team and our mighty country”.
Team spirit, laughter and hopes of Olympic glory were in the air at a special sendoff ceremony for the Russian team at Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow.
While the ceremony is a tradition, this year it was marked by especially fervent calls to defend the country’s honour, given that more than 100 Russian athletes from various sports have been banned because of state-sponsored doping.
Since the new rules came in, some federations have taken a tough line, with exclusions of much of Russia’s team from events such as rowing, canoeing and swimming. Other sports, such as judo and tennis, have allowed the entire Russian team to compete in their sport.
The federation made a decision to organise the three-hour competition after the Court of Arbitration for Sport last week rejected athletes’ appeals against the IAAF ban.
By contrast, the 31 tower blocks of the Olympic Village in Rio, built at a cost of $880 million to house 18,000 athletes and team staff during the 17-day event, will be sold off as luxury housing after the Games.
This follows a previous report by the same agency documenting rampant doping among Russia’s track and field athletes.
“You can’t break Russians”, she said.
The Elysee palace says that Hollande will be in Rio on Thursday, where he will meet with members of the Paris 2024 bid committee and have lunch with French athletes in the Olympic village. The name of another cyclist banned from the Olympics because of being implicated in the WADA report has not been disclosed yet.
Advertisement
They banned us without evidence, rudely, insolently, and didn’t give us any chance to justify ourselves or fight for our right to participate in the Olympic Games.
