Russia Ducks Full Doping Ban in IOC Ruling

But Olympics panel leaves it to global federations to decide which athletes to ban
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jul 24, 2016 9:03 AM CDT
Russia Ducks Full Doping Ban in IOC Ruling
In this Feb. 4, 2014 file photo Russian President Vladimir Putin exits the stage after speaking at the opening of the 126th session of the International Olympic Committee, at the Zimny Theater, ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.   (Pavel Golovkin)

The IOC has decided against a complete ban on Russian athletes from the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, reports the AP. The International Olympic Committee says it is leaving it up to global federations to decide which Russian athletes to accept in their sports. The IOC says it will deny entry of Russian athletes who do not meet the requirements set out for the federations. The IOC says the federations have the authority, under their own rules, to exclude Russian teams as a whole from their sports.

Russia has already been handed a doping punishment when its track and field team lost an appeal against a ban on Thursday. Earlier interim IOC measures announced Tuesday included urging winter sports federations to move their competitions out of Russia this season, in response to allegations that Russian state officials hid hundreds of failed drug tests over several years and swapped samples from doped athletes for clean ones during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Russia has admitted some doping violations by its athletes and coaches, but still denies that the government was involved. State media has painted the issue as a US-led political vendetta. The IOC had said it would seek a balance between "collective punishment" and "individual justice." (More IOC stories.)

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