Russia Prepares Sanctions in Retaliation for Olympics Doping Ban

[Truth_hurts]

Russian legislators have said they are preparing retaliatory sanctions against international officials responsible for Russia’s ban from the Olympics, to be introduced after February's Winter Games.

 

Russian Olympic team and officials were barred from the coming games in South Korea following an investigation into a state-sponsored doping scheme at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Russian officials have denied the accusations and claim that the ban is an anti-Russian conspiracy.

 

On Monday, members of Russia’s upper house of parliament told the pro-Kremlin Izvestia newspaper that sanctions could target around 10 people from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), as well as officials from the FBI and the office of U.S. special prosecutor Robert Mueller. 

 

“What’s most important now is for our athletes to perform well. After the Olympic Games and the Olympic cycle end, we will identify those who are guilty and give everyone what’s coming," Andrei Klimov, the head of the Federation Council's committee on state sovereignty, told Izvestia. 

 

The punitive measures could include criminal cases and entry bans into Russia, according to unnamed sources cited by the newspaper. 

 

Klimov said the decision to retaliate had been reached as far back as Dec. 12. 

 

The report comes a week after a Russian-linked group of hackers leaked emails claiming an “Anglo-Saxon†lobby headed by WADA and the U.S. Olympic Committee was “fighting for power and cash in the sporting world.â€

 

https://themoscowtimes.com/news/russia-prepares-sanctions-retaliation-for-olympics-doping-ban-60184

 

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previously reported on Dec 6, 2017

 

Russia's Winter Olympics Doping Ban, Explained

 

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Tuesday announced that Russia’s athletes and officials would be barred from next February’s Winter Games in South Korea over doping allegations.

 

IOC President Thomas Bach said the move would pave the way for Russian athletes who could prove they were clean to compete under a neutral flag without the Russian anthem.

 

 

What does the IOC ruling mean for athletes?

 

 

— Only athletes with a clean record will be allowed to participate in the Winter Games in Pyeongchang.

 

— Even then, clean athletes will only be able to participate under a neutral flag. Other symbols of the Russian team, including the national anthem and the Russian tricolor will also be banned from the Games.

 

— Russian athletes have to individually submit an application to an IOC panel in which they prove they have a clean record.

 

—  Coaches and medical staff associated with the banned athletes will also be barred from attending the Pyeongchang Games.

 

— The ban also applies to anyone considered to have been a “member of the leadership†of the Russian Team at the Sochi Olympic Games in 2014.

 

— Cleared athletes will compete as an “Olympic Athlete From Russia†(OAR).

 

This is how the ban impacts Russian officials:  

 

— Dmitry Chernyshenko, who helped organize the Sochi Games in 2014, is suspended from his role in helping organize the Olympic commission for Beijing 2022.

 

— Russia has to pay the IOC $15 million in compensation for the investigation into Russian doping and help build an Independent Testing Authority (ITA).

 

— Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko, who as sports minister was implicated in the doping scheme by the World Anti-Doping Agency. is barred from attending the Olympic Games for life.

 

— Mutko’s former deputy, Yury Nagornykh, has also received a life suspension. His name has also appeared in WADA reports, which claim he played a crucial part in a state-sponsored doping program.

 

— The president of Russia’s Olympic Committee, Alexander Zhukov, has been excluded from the International Committee.

 

— The Russian television and radio holding that includes Rossia-1 and Rossia-24 has said it won’t broadcast the Games in February.

 

https://themoscowtimes.com/news/russia-winter-olympics-doping-ban-explained-pyeongchang-OAR-59824

 

 

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Russian doping: Whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov will testify but life under 'serious threat'

 

 

The whistleblower whose evidence led to Russia's ban from next month's Winter Olympics is preparing to testify against those involved - even though his life is under "serious threat", his lawyer says.

 

 

Former Russian anti-doping official Grigory Rodchenkov fled to the United States after his allegations about a state-

sponsored doping programme.

 

 

Russia was banned from the Games after Rodchenkov's claims were investigated - though athletes who can prove they are clean can compete as neutrals.

 

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has handed life bans to 43 athletes involved in the doping programme - though 42 of those have appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas).

 

Their cases will be looked at in the coming weeks and Rodchenkov's lawyer, Jim Walden, says his client will likely give evidence at the hearings.

 

Walden told BBC Radio 5 live that the threat to Dr Rodchenkov - who was director of Russia's anti-doping laboratory during Sochi 2014 - from Russian retaliation needs to be taken "very seriously".

 

He added: "We know that Dr Rodchenkov is at the top of the Russian hate list. We know that at least one official has called for Dr Rodchenkov's execution."

 

But Rodchenkov is still preparing to at testify at the Cas hearings of the athletes and that of Russia's Deputy Prime Minister and former sports minister Vitaly Mutko, who is also banned for his alleged part in the doping scandal.

 

"He's very focused on what he needs to do in the next several weeks," Walden said.

 

"Grigory is expected to testify at both proceedings. He's focused on preparing for that. After he gets through these, it's incumbent upon us to make sure he's safe."

 

Following previous claims that Rodchenkov also has information about doping in football, Walden told BBC Radio 5 live that Fifa, the sport's world governing body, "is considering whether to hire an independent investigator" to look into claims Russia's alleged state-sponsored doping programme included football players.

 

Russia is hosting the World Cup this summer - though Mutko recently stood down from the tournament's organising committee to focus on contesting his ban.

 

read more here: http://www.bbc.com/sport/winter-sports/42674331