Russia athletics ban to run into 2017
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[December 02, 2016]
By Mitch Phillips
MONACO (Reuters) - Russia's athletics
ban will run into 2017 and may include the August world
championships after a Task Force monitoring the nation's anti-doping
programme refused on Thursday to put any dates on a "road map" for a
return.
Rune Andersen, the Norwegian heading the independent Task Force,
reported to the International Association of Athletics Federations
(IAAF) Council that there had been areas of progress but many issues
still needed clarifying in the new year.
IAAF president Sebastian Coe said the Council felt "comforted" the
changes had come about as a result of the decision to ban the
Russians but recognized that athletics still had work to do to
regain the trust of the public.
"This is a pretty important week in the history of our sport," said
Coe who will present a series of radical governance reforms to a
special Congress meeting on Saturday.
"I do not want this sport to return to the grotesque stories that
even over the last few days we’ve been waking up to," he added, in
reference to recent allegations of more corruption in the
organization under its previous leadership.
The Russian Federation (RUSAF) was banned in November 2015 after an
independent World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) probe exposed
state-sponsored doping on a massive scale.
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The suspension was upheld earlier this year, ruling almost all
Russian track and field athletes out of the Rio Olympics.
On Thursday, Andersen indicated there was a chink of light for the
country, one of the super-powers of athletics.
"RUSAF has made further progress since June including anti-doping
education modules and securing the co-operation of the Russian
criminal authorities and parliament in criminalizing the supply of
doping products," he told a news conference.
"But one of the key remaining issues is how to demonstrate the IAAF
and RUSADA (Russian Anti-Doping) will be able to carry out testing
without interference which is a key part of their reinstatement.
McLAREN REPORT
"The Task Force will go to Moscow in January to assess the response
to part two of the McLaren report on Dec. 9 and to monitor
progress."
Richard McLaren, co-author of the independent WADA report, is due to
release the second part of his findings in London next week.
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![](../images/120216pics/sports63.jpg)
Rune Andersen, head of the IAAF taskforce on Russia, attends a press
conference as part of the International Association of Athletics
Federations (IAAF) council meeting in Monaco, December 1, 2016.
REUTERS/Eric Gaillard
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Andersen said the Task Force would report back to Council in
February when it hoped to "identify a clear road map" for Russia's
return.
However, he declined to give any further likely timeframe and it
appears unlikely the nation will be in the frame for the European
indoor championships in Belgrade in March.
Earlier on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin used his state
of the nation address to say he thought effective measures would be
in place early in the new year.
"I am sure the so-called doping scandal will allow us to create the
most advanced system of righting this evil in Russia," Putin said.
"I assume the national programme of counter-acting doping will be
ready as early as the beginning of next year."
On Friday, the IAAF will announce the winners of the male and female
athlete of the year awards while Saturday's Congress is to discuss
and almost certainly improve Coe's radical shakeup of the
organization.
Those changes, geared towards making the IAAF more accountable and
transparent and establishing an independent integrity unit, will be
debated against a backdrop of more allegations of massive corruption
by Coe's predecessor Lamine Diack and his son Papa Massata Diack.
Both men are being investigated by French prosecutors for alleged
corruption and money-laundering and have been accused of accepting
bribes to cover up positive doping tests and influencing the award
of hosting rights for major events.
(Editing by Tony Jimenez)
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