Russian Olympic Committee president Alexander Zhukov was scathing of WADA.
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“The fundamental principles of the Olympic movement, basic human rights, the rights of an athlete and citizens, and independence and integrity of the Olympic family, are all under attack”.
Russian flag is displayed at the Rio 2016 Olympic Village for athletes. “The cynical ‘collateral damage” approach is not what the Olympic movement stands for”. “We are witnessing direct interference of politics in sport”.
Bach reiterated his call for a full review of the global anti-doping system to make it more efficient and independent.
Bach s condemnation of WADA escalates a feud between the Olympics and anti-doping bodies which has broken out in the final days before the Rio Games. The games begin on Friday and run through August 21.
A number of Russian athletes were also banned from swimming, rowing and canoeing, although there was no blanket ban on competitors from the country in these sports.
President: “This is the beginning of a journey, because after the Olympic Games have closed, we will of course continue to support the Olympic Refugee athletes and we will help them in sport and in life”.
The doping claims, though, aren’t limited to the Sochi games.
Moscow, though, has vigorously denied running an athlete drugging program.
International Olympic Committee chief Thomas Bach said the Russian Federation scandal, which he has described as “contemptuous”, had exposed deficiencies in WADA.
“Because of the seriousness of the allegations we could not uphold the presumption of innocence for Russian athletes”.
Bach insisted that athletes can not be punished for the wrongdoing of their government.
Russia’s 11 Olympic boxers have all been cleared to compete at Rio 2016 by the International Boxing Association (AIBA), despite the nation’s widespread doping scandal.
Those who win their appeals – and many legal experts think all those barred from competing here because of previous doping convictions have strong cases – could be added to the Russian delegation even after Thursday’s announcement. If you are clean, you are respected and rewarded.
“Leaving aside that such a comparison is completely out of any proportion when it comes to the rules of sport, let us just for a moment consider the consequences of a “nuclear option, ‘” Bach said”.
After a feisty two-hour debate, only one of the 85 members – Britain’s Adam Pengilly – voted against the executive board’s position.
Bach covered a range of topics in a more than 20-minute opening address, including the controversy surrounding Russia’s participation in Rio.
The IOC announced on Saturday that its panel, consisting of Ugur Erdener, the IOC’s medical commission chairman, Germany’s Claudia Bokel and fellow IOC member Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr., would review the decisions by the individual sports federations over the eligibility of Russian athletes.
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The Olympic Committee’s choices in disciplining Russian Federation have been controversial, and are likely to fuel debate for months to come, as authorities anticipate an overhaul of the antidoping system.
