An astonishing punishment has been handed to Russia, the host of the last Winter Olympics in Sochi. Today the country’s Olympic team has been barred from the 2018 Winter Olympics as punishment for alleged state-backed doping at the 2014 Sochi Games, the International Olympic Committee announced.
After an inquiry into state-sponsored doping in Russia, it was determined that the Russians tampered with bottles in the lab that handled drug testing in the 2014 games.
U.S Anti-Doping Agency officials are calling the ban “a significant victory for clean athletes as the IOC finally listened to their voice.”
The Russian Olympic Committee has been fined $15 million and has been suspended effective immediately, which means that in South Korea’s Winter Games next year there won’t be Russian anthem or flags and no accreditation for Russian officials.
Individual Russian athletes that prove to be clean can compete as long as they comply with strict guidelines, but they will do so under the Olympic flag and if they win it will be the Olympic anthem that will be played instead.
Several Russians have been stripped of their Sochi medals, leaving athletes from other countries in line to win retroactive medals and several top Russian officials have been banned from any future Olympic games.
Despite all the evidence that the IOC has pointed out as evidence, the Kremlin is denying the state-sponsored doping accusation and Russian television channels are vowing that they won’t show the games.
President Putin has called the ban an attempt by the United States to influence people in Russia to vote against him in the presidential election next year.
Top officials from several sports federations in Russia are criticizing the ban and are calling it an insult. Meanwhile, top politicians are calling it a humiliation and are urging the Kremlin to boycott the 2018 Winter Games completely and are even calling into question any future cooperation with the Olympic movement.
