The International Olympic Committee (IOC) invited the middle-distance athlete and her husband to attend next month’s Games as guests but denied her a competitive spot in Rio, arguing her doping-tainted past made her ineligible.
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The IOC rejected calls from the World Anti-Doping Agency and dozens of other anti-doping bodies to exclude the entire Russian Olympic team following allegations of state-sponsored cheating.
Instead, the decision on individual athletes’ participation will be left with their relevant sports federations.
The head of Russia’s swimming federation Vladimir Salnikov told R-Sport that he was waiting to hear from the global swimming federation if the new IOC criteria would rule out swimming star Yulia Efimova, who tested positive for banned substance meldonium.
With Rio’s opening ceremony less than two weeks away, the IOC’s decision means each sport will have to make an “individual analysis” of every Russian competitor, which will then be subject to approval by an “independent arbitrator” from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Cycling’s world governing body may follow suit, with president Brian Cookson saying it would be “difficult for us to ban an entire team”.
In defence of his board’s decision, Bach said: “We have reversed the presumption of innocence for Russian athletes, making them assume collective responsibility”.
“But natural justice requires that individuals have the chance to rebut this reversal”.
However, the International Olympic Committee has placed restrictions on the Russian team, including a measure barring the selection of any athletes who have previously served doping bans.
“In this way we are protecting the clean athletes because of the high criteria we set”.
Russians have poured scorn on the idea of American athletes with histories of drug suspensions, such as Justin Gatlin and Tyson Gay, being allowed to compete while Russians with similar pasts are barred.
The IOC also rejected the application by Russian whistleblower Yulia Stepanova, an 800-meter runner and former doper who helped expose the doping scandal, to compete under a neutral flag at the games.
Stepanova, who provided evidence of doping in a series of German broadcaster ARD documentaries, has fled Russian Federation and is living in hiding at an undisclosed location in North America, fearing for her safety. However, the International Olympic Committee added that it would invite her and her husband, Vitaly Stepanov, to attend the games.
For Russia, the IOC’s compromise was probably the best they could have hoped for. “They compete regularly”, said Russian Sports Minister, Vitaly Mutko.
The IOC also reiterated its “serious concerns” about the weaknesses in the fight against doping, and called on WADA to “fully review their anti-doping systems”.
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WADA and 14 national anti-doping organizations had urged the IOC to impose a blanket ban in the wake of the damning McLaren report, but former Olympic fencing champion Bach said Russian sportsmen and women “will have to clear the highest hurdle to take part in the Olympics”. “At least one wise decision on track and field has been taken”.
