A view through a fence, decorated with the Olympic rings, shows a building of the federal state budgetary institution “Federal scientific centre of physical culture and sports”, which houses a laboratory accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), in Moscow, Russia on November 11, 2015.
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With the opening ceremony just over two months away, Olympic leaders have plenty of challenges to discuss this week when they meet for the last time before gathering in Rio de Janeiro on the eve of South Americas first games.
Russia can’t take part at Rio Olympics unless the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) restores the country’s membership, president of the All-Russia Athletics Federation (ARAF) Dmitry Shlyakhtin said on Wednesday.
Fraccari says “Olympic baseball and softball in Japan would be the biggest and most exciting global competition in the history of our sport, and would help the Olympic Games touch the entire host nation and worldwide community”.
The IOC’s Executive Board added in a statement: “The fight against doping is a top priority for the IOC, which has established a zero-tolerance policy”.
“The discussion will have to address the hard decision between collective responsibility and individual justice”, the International Olympic Committee said.
Russian Federation has been at the heart of a huge doping scandal and the country’s track and field athletes have been suspended pending an investigation.
“The programme comes on top of the extensive programme already being carried out by International Federations and National Anti-Doping Organisations”.
Baseball and softball have been off the Olympic program since the 2008 Beijing Games.
The IOC also will widen its retesting program of stored samples from the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, saying it will target medalists from both games for possible reanalysis.
Thirty-one athletes tested positive following re-analysis of samples from the 2008 Games – as did a further 23 from London 2012 – and the International Olympic Committee will now take further measures in its battle against doping, with particular scrutiny placed on athletes from Russia, Kenya and Mexico, where the testing programmes are “non-compliant”.
Kenya and Mexico have failed to get their doping programme in line with WADA’s demands. The IOC did not identify the athletes, their sports or their nationalities.
The proposed sports for Tokyo would add 18 events and 474 athletes to the program.
Roller skating had been the main point of contention, due to a lack of a unified worldwide governing body.
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“The IOC will not hesitate to punish anyone within its reach responsible for using or providing doping products or methods, including officials, coaches and other members of the athlete’s entourage”.
