The international Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has pushed the decision on two Russian swimmers removed from the Olympic Games that begin on Saturday to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ad-hoc panel.
An independent report commissioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), referred to as the “McLaren IP report,” found that Vlad Morozov and Nikita Lobintsev, along with Daria Ustinova, were involved in a Russian state-sponsored program to make positive doping tests disappear. Morozov and Lobintsev, citing many clean tests run by doping agencies outside of the control of Russia, have both chosen to appeal that decision to the CAS, while Ustinova has not.
The case, the first to be heard by the CAS in Rio (among 18 – already a new record for one edition of the Olympic Games), was heard in front of the IOC on July 31st. The case was adjourned, to allow the parties to provide additional information, but has now been pushed before the IOC’s three-member ad-hoc committee to decide their eligibility for the Olympics. Initially, the IOC had given international sports federations (IFs) the authority to make final decisions on athletes, but took back final authority after wildly-varying levels of enforcement by the IFs.
There were reports from lawyers and government officials in Russia that FINA would be making the final decision in this case, but FINA denied that, saying that it would remain up to the IOC.
Both Morozov and Lobintsev would be strong medal contenders if allowed to compete – Morozov individually, and both swimmers as members of Russia’s free relays. Morozov was the 2013 World Championships silver medalist in the 50 free and is a three-time World Champion in short course who has lived and trained in the United States since he was a teenager. Lobintsev is a two-time Olympic medalist, winning silver in Beijing on the Russian 800 free relay and bronze in London in the 400 free relay.
Of the 7 Russian swimmers removed from the Olympics for different reasons, only Morozov, Lobintsev, and Yulia Efimova have appealed their cases to the CAS so far. Efimova was un-nominated by the Russian Olympic Committee not because she was named in the McLaren IP report; rather, her expulsion was a result of another part of the IOC directive that any Russian athlete with a previous doping sanction be ineligible for the Olympics. Her case could set a precedent for the many other Russian athletes in different sports in a similar position.
Amen to that she is a CHAMPION for sure!!!!!
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The paper’s sources reportedly said that WADA now has a problem as it “had been caught short not having enough detail to justify some of the claims against athletes.”
“They sexed it up which is crazy because now the entire report is under scrutiny and I am sure most of the report is absolutely accurate. It just puts question marks where question marks should not be,”
it was found that Russian samples were split into four separate categories of seriousness. However, one of these categories was for samples which were not considered serious at all.
“We were asked to make a judgment about Russian competitors based on McLaren’s report but… Read more »
This whole mess makes my head hurt. Isn’t it the IOC who asked the ROC to withdraw these swimmers from Olympic consideration. The ROC did that and the athletes then appealed to CAS who now has dumped it back to the IOC? What a joke these organizations are.
I heard Mary T is coming out of retirement and swim exhibition in the 200 fly in Rio. Word on the street is she went a 2:02 in practice at the end of a hard set.
Gee, it is really starting to seem like nobody else wants to take the fall for the IOC.
Wow, am I the only one that believes in Vlad? I have met him a few times, and I honestly believe that he has stayed clean. I don’t know about Lobintsev, and I don’t believe Efimova should be allowed to compete, but I think Vlad should be allowed to compete. I would like to know what conclusive evidence those of you have, that proves he cheated. His name was on the list for “disappearing positives”, but what exactly does that mean in this case? Do we know for a fact that he had a positive test, and that’s why he was on this list, or were the Russians hiding all top level athletes results? How was he able to have… Read more »
Vlad had lived in US for years and has been tested numerous times. I have known Vlad since his he started college. I truly believe he is the victim of Russian politics
Living and training in the US has, historically, not been anything like an indication that an athlete is clean… So I’m not really sure why that matters?
Interesting logic… Jessica Hardy had lived in US all her life and has been tested numerous times too. And I’m sure somebody had known her since she started college.
Absolutely agree! Oh yea and also he a doper.
CoachK, did you read the report? The methodology was your test only went missing if Russia. Sport ministry ordered it to go missing after a positive test. Of course it is impossible to prove what any specific test would say now, given the destruction. And there are many many more documents to be translated that could say many interesting things.
As predicted CAS do not have the will for the fight. IOC have already proved they do not either.
This is the end of CAS – I have given.them.the benefig of the doubr .To make a decision iz what they ate there for. These guys are only there for the Olympi hobnobbing & just sh*t
So ba k my verh prescient little tale of John Coates who is noth President of CAS & the VP of the IOC .
John you officially suck. Step down you are s national embarassment.