He demanded a sweeping overhaul of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) here in Rio today as the number of Russian appeals against a ban in the wake of the IOC’s failure to impose a blanket ban mounted.
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“What is therefore not acceptable is the insinuation by some proponents of this “nuclear option” that anyone who does not share their opinion is not fighting against doping”, he added.
“To those who crave collective disqualification for Russian Federation, taking into account ruined fates and broke lives of innocent athletes, I fully agree with the position of president Bach that each individual must have at least the opportunity to prove their innocence”, he said.
Olympic leaders have let the global federations that govern each sport rule on the matter case by case.
Reedie sat through the fiery session but said he would respond when he presented his report later. “This is not what the Olympic movement stands for”, he said.
Reedie said he found some of the International Olympic Committee criticism “personally offensive” and defended WADA, although he accepted that some of the agency’s workings needed an overhaul. “This vision includes a more robust and efficient worldwide anti-doping system”.
But the overwhelming impression gained from listening to the IOC members who spoke during the debate on the Russian doping crisis was that the Olympic movement places the blame for what has happened squarely at WADA’s door.
Senior IOC figures claim Games chiefs were misled by Canadian Professor Richard McLaren’s probe into claims that Russian tests were tampered with.
Argentine IOC member Gerardo Werthein accused WADA of “grand-standing”. “With that has come a greater deal of responsibility”, she said.
“They said they didn’t know what to do with this”, Israeli member Alex Giladi said.
“I don’t feel as if I’ve been run under a bus”, Reedie told reporters, insisting that both sides were in general accord on the need to find solutions for the future.
He assured me he wasnt speaking about me and he maybe overstated his case.
The International Olympic Committee announced the go-ahead for 271 Russian athletes about 24 hours before the opening ceremony of the games.
When asked after the news conference by CNN’s Nick Paton Walsh why the announcement was made now, Zhukov said: “This is just information for this moment, it’s not final information”.
“I’ve been running the hare that perhaps broadcasters, sponsors that invest in and benefit very largely from the world of sport, might just think clean sport was a good idea and would like to help”. That is because the court received an appeal from the Russian Swimming Federation against a potential ban on Lobintsev and Morozov from the 2016 Summer Games. We may disagree how we get there but we all work toward the same goal of protecting clean athletes.
Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time with 22 medals including 18 golds, was chosen for the honor following a vote of Team USA members. “The arrow’s left the bow”, he said.
However, two of those rowers have scored a partial victory against their ban after the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled their exclusion over a past doping sanction was “unenforceable”.
Their case is now being decided by the same International Olympic Committee panel, which is comprised of outgoing International Olympic Committee athletes’ commission head Claudia Bokel, World Archery president Ugur Erdener and modern pentathlon chief Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr.
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Zhukov said it was “unfair” that athletes from other countries who have previously served drugs bans, such as American sprinter Justin Gatlin, will compete in Rio.
