Russia doping scandal: WADA founding president calls for Russia to be banned from Rio 2016 Olympics

No mercy for Russia: Pound says dope report is only the tip of the iceberg
Anna Sergeeva/Getty Images

Russia must be banned from Rio 2016, says World Anti-Doping Agency founding president Dick Pound.

The International Olympic Committee’s executive board were discussing Russia’s Rio participation via teleconference this lunchtime following the publication of the damning WADA independent report by lawyer Richard McLaren, which catalogued wholesale doping with the backing of the Russian Government.

At least 312 of 577 positive tests were covered under orders of the Russian Sports Ministry across 30 sports while doping samples of cheating Russian athletes were switched at the Sochi Winter Olympics in a covert operation using the country’s secret service.

And Pound, also a former IOC executive board member, told Standard Sport: “WADA have come out and said the IOC should not participate in Rio. From the slices that McLaren has been able to produce and he’s made it clear it’s the tip of the iceberg, it’s clear there have been cover-ups in virtually every Olympic sport in Russia, and that’s as a result of state interference.”

Following yesterday’s revelations, WADA recommended that the IOC and the International Paralympic Committee ban Russia from the Games. The Olympics start on August 5 while the Paralympics begin on September 7.

The 15-member IOC executive board is headed by President Thomas Bach and includes WADA president Sir Craig Reedie, European Olympic Committee boss Pat Hickey, who in a statement at the weekend made it clear he was against a Russian ban, and Ukrainian former athlete Sergey Bubka.

The Russian Olympic Committee have called for a fuller investigation because of the seriousness of the allegations and that they would provide full assistance. Russia President Vladimir Putinwarned that the Olympic movement could “wind up on the edge of schism” if his country is banned.

Pound added: “I don’t know whether they [the IOC] will ban them [the whole team]. It will be hard in light of this report and the WADA statement to do a 180. This [ban] may be the far end of the response but, if you’re going to have a deterrent programme, this may be the time to implement. We can’t have zero tolerance except for Russia.”

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