The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has recommended that Russian athletes in all sports be denied entry to the 2016 Rio Olympics in the wake of the McLaren Report’s assertions of a massive state-sponsored doping program.
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The International Olympic Committee (IOC), which will determine whether all Russian teams should be barred from competing in Rio, has said the findings show a “shocking and unprecedented attack on the integrity of sports and on the Olympic Games”.
A statement by Drug Free Sport New Zealand said the McLaren Report proves “that Russian Federation was complicit in organising and allowing their elite athletes to dope and the subsequent cover up of positive doping tests”.
Later, the IAAF’s anti-doping department rejected applications from all Russian athletes for participation in global competitions, including the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, except for long jump athlete Darya Klishina, who is trained outside Russia.
“The surprise result of the Sochi investigation was the revelation of the extent of State oversight and directed control of the Moscow Laboratory in processing, and covering up urine samples of Russian athletes from virtually all sports before and after the Sochi Games”, wrote McLaren.
A small number of Russian athletes who can prove they have a verifiable doping-free history will be allowed to compete under the International Olympic Committee (IOC) flag.
As described by today’s report, the system allegedly hinged on Russia’s anti-doping laboratory in Moscow, where Rodchenkov had been director.
McLaren dubbed Russia’s program the “disappearing positive methodology” in the report, which was released Monday by WADA.
In short, Russia’s deputy minister of sports, who was also part of Russia’s Olympic Committee, would direct workers at Moscow’s anti-doping laboratory of which positive samples to send through and which to hold back. Gilberto Amauri de Godoy Filho says it will take “much of the brightness of the competition, but it is necessary to consider curbing doping”.
McLaren’s report said it did, and the investigator said he was “unwaveringly confident in my report”.
Following up on allegations first made by “60 Minutes” and the New York Times last spring, the report supported claims that officials at a Moscow anti-doping lab switched samples so that Russian athletes could avoid testing positive for banned substances.
McLaren said his report was handed over to WADA on Saturday and had not been leaked in advance.
[2.] The Investigation determined that a high number of Olympic sports, non-Olympic sports and Paralympic sports benefited from the system orchestrated by the Russian Ministry of Sport.
Like Rodchenkov, McLaren also stressed that the operation was carried out by the Russian special services.
However, in the light of the report, with a wide group of sports bodies now calling for a blanket ban, a broad sanction could now be on the cards. This involved opening Russian athletes’ sample bottles and “swapping out dirty urine with clean urine”, a process which was carried out during the night.
Both the ministry of sport and the domestic intelligence service were involved in the doping programme, according to the report released in Toronto, Canada.
DFSNZ chief executive Graeme Steel said the International Olympic Committee and IPC must act decisively on the findings of the report.
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McLaren said the evidence of tampering with sample bottles in Sochi was apparent and that similar bottles could be used at Rio without fear.
