Russian athletes lose their appeal against Rio Olympics doping ban

Sixty-eight Russian track and field athletes will be banned from Rio following allegations of state-sponsored doping. They have lost their appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport which upheld a ban imposed by the International Association of Athletics Federations. The ruling, which came after repeated allegations of mass doping and state-sponsored cover-ups, could influence whether the entire Russian Olympic team is banned from the games.

I certainly regret such a decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport which refers to absolutely all of our athletes. The principle of collective responsibility is hardly acceptable

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov

The Russian Athletics Federation said it had done everything it could to ensure its team competed at Rio and a Kremlin spokesman said it was looking at the possibility of a meeting between president Vladimir Putin and Russian athletes. Pole vaulting champion Yelena Isinbayeva described the decision as a “funeral of athletics”. However, IAAF president Sebastian Coe said he was “thankful that our rules and our power to uphold our rules and the anti-doping code have been supported”.

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