Long jumper Darya Klishina, Russia’s only Olympic competitor in athletics, has been suspended from the Rio Games by track and field’s governing body, pending a ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport. He would not specify what the new information is or who delivered it. While she immediately appealed the decision, her participation is now in serious doubt.
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Suspension of Russian long jumper Darya Klishina from the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro may be not the last provocation against Russian athletes, Russia’s Minister of Sports Vitaly Mutko told TASS on Sunday. The IAAF had accepted her application because of her residency in the States.
Another Russian athlete, Yulia Stepanova, was also allowed to compete by the IAAF, in recognition that her information was vital to help uncover the doping scheme in Russia, made public via two reports of a commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) led by former WADA chief Dick Pound.
Klishina is now appealing the decision with the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which has said it will rule on the case Sunday or Monday.
‘Based in the United States for three years now, I have been nearly exclusively tested outside of the Anti-Doping system in question.
‘I will take every possible effort to protect my clean image as an athlete.
‘At this moment I can not help but feel betrayed by a system that is not focused on keeping the sport clean and supporting rank-and-file athletes, but rather seeking victories outside sport arenas’.
The IAAF did not explain its decision. “Overall, all of this looks like a mockery of the athlete by the IAAF”, he said in a video message posted by the Russian Olympic Committee.
“The IAAF decision is based on additional data on McLaren’s report requested by the IAAF with reference to Klishina”, said an official to R-Sport. Klishina is slated to start competition in Rio on Tuesday.
Russia’s doping problem has been in the public eye since November 2015, when the World Anti-Doping Agency published a report indicating that the Russian Anti-Doping Agency was enabling systematic doping in athletes. She answered them, and they only took this decision today, August 13.
Klishina reacted strongly in a Facebook posting, suggesting she was the victim of a political conspiracy – echoing comments by President Vladimir Putin who has said clean Russian athletes have been targeted by a shadowy plot emanating from the West.
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Body type J: McLaren has previously said his investigation is continuing and that more athletes could be implicated as more evidence emerges.
