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Russia banned from international competitions for four years

Russia has been banned from competing at major international sporting events for the next four ye...



Russia banned from internation...
Other Sports

Russia banned from international competitions for four years

Russia has been banned from competing at major international sporting events for the next four years by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

It means there will be no Russian team at the Olympics in Tokyo next year, or the 2022 football World Cup in Qatar or the 2022 Winter Olympics.

The punishment is for altering data linked to positive doping tests.

Global anti-doping leaders agreed upon the ban unanimously at the International Olympic Committee’s headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland on Monday morning.

It marks the severest punishment that has been handed out in relation to doping after years of controversy that has cast major doubt over sporting events around the world.

Russian officials have the right to appeal which would have to be lodged with the Swiss-based Court of Court of Arbitration for Sport.

World Anti Doping Agency vice-president Linda Helleland said today that the ban was "not enough".

She then went on to say that "she wanted sanctions that can not be watered down,"

"We owe it to the clean athletes to implement the sanctions as strongly as possible."

Russia has been banned from competing as a nation in athletics since 2015.

168 Russian athletes competed under a neutral flag at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang after the country was banned following the 2014 Games, which it hosted in Sochi.

Russian athletes won 33 medals at those games, 13 of which were gold.

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