Ahead of the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro Sports arbitration court within 24 hours made a decision on the appeal of the Russian Paralympic Committee.
On August 7, the head of the International Paralympic Committee, Philip Craven, during the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, at a special press conference, announced the exclusion of Russian Paralympians from the 2016 Games in Brazil.
A week later, RKR appealed the decision to CAS.
The court hearing, which started on August 22, did not give any answers, and a decision was expected in the first half of the next day. By the morning, encouraging information began to appear, according to which the likelihood of a positive decision regarding the Russian national team was assessed as high.
However, CAS made a diametrically opposite decision: the appeal was rejected, Russian Paralympians will not go to Rio.
The head of the IPC, Craven, was pleased with the decision, but at the same time expressed sympathy for the Russian Paralympic team.
“We are encouraged that the CAS has upheld the IPC decision. Although we are pleased with this decision, this day is not a holiday, we sympathize with the Russian athletes. This is a sad day for the Paralympic movement, but also a day of something new. The IPC will now work with international federations to redistribute the Russians' 267 Games licenses.
The IPC's decision was based on the fact that the committee is autonomous organization, and the RKR is the only member representing Russia. We found that the RPC had failed to meet its obligations under the anti-doping rules and therefore took this course of action for the benefit of the Paralympic movement.
After Rio we will work with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to set the criteria for RCC to meet the rules and regain its status. We will also work closely with WADA on the measures that will be taken in relation to the athletes who were mentioned in the McLaren report,” the IPC official website quotes Craven as saying.
The Russian side, of course, did not support decision taken. In particular, the senior coach of the Russian Paralympic wheelchair fencing team, Elena Belkina, believes that the Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro will lose a lot due to the absence of the Russian team.
— How do you feel about the decision made?
“My opinion is this: no one will wait for tears, as we fenced, so we will fence,” Belkina told Gazeta.Ru. — Nobody will forbid us rehabilitation. That's it. Yes, of course, the world will not see a beautiful level of fencing that is competitive with China, and will lose something from this.
— Is this decision related to politics?
- No, they are simply hiding behind politics - this is an absolutely clear division of medals.
Philip Craven, the head of the IPC, is British and he has not disengaged from his country.
That time they took fourth place, they started the Paralympic movement at one time, and at at the moment We are already second after the Chinese. So they want to return. I repeat: they are simply hiding behind politics, but in reality this is a pure division of medals: “I am in power, I want to divide the medals myself.”
My opinion may not coincide with the opinion of the Russian Paralympic Committee, but I am sure that in this situation everything is simply covered up by politics, and their internal motives are clear: we are too strong,” Belkina said.
The senior coach of the Russian Paralympic shooting team, Azat Safenko, spoke about his attitude to what was happening.
— How did you personally and the athletes react to this CAS decision?
- The mood now, of course, is not the most rosy, not the most cheerful - the athletes understand that they have been preparing for four years, winning licenses honestly, and now, based on the report of a certain person, who indirectly indicates guilt, such decisions have been made.
— Is this decision fair?
- Two authorities said that it is fair, although we still do not agree with it, but what can you do about it? At the moment, our leaders are in flight, we will wait for their arrival and carry out the work. In the meantime, we continue to train.
— Do you still hope to get to Rio?
— Coaches are adults, they understand everything perfectly. In theory, getting to Rio is impossible due to the fact that by decision of CAS the RKR is excluded from membership in the IPC, this is the main wording.
Paralympic champion, RKR Secretary General Mikhail Terentyev expressed the opinion that such decisions have political overtones.
“The decision is fair from the point of view of the letter of the law, after all, this is the Court of Arbitration for Sport,” Terentyev began. “There is still, of course, the opportunity to appeal higher, and this will probably be done.” But in the spirit of the decision taken, this is unfair. This can be explained by the fact that, on the basis of the same report by Richard McLaren, two completely opposite decisions are made (in relation to the Russian Olympic and Paralympic teams - Gazeta.Ru).
It can, of course, be explained by different arguments - legal ones, for example: the IOC manages sports through federations, and the IPC manages directly; from a legal point of view, there are really a lot of arguments that can be made.
However, these arguments are based on rules - rules that allow the violation of human rights, the rights of an athlete, who in no way could influence the abuses of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA).”
— Is there still a chance that the Russian team will still get to Rio?
— Lawyers will look at the CAS decision, what he relied on in making his decision. Further steps will be developed, but all this will take a lot of time, and the Paralympics will start very soon.
The situation is similar to the one our track and field athletes find themselves in.
— Is there any political subtext in this decision?
- Of course. WADA itself says that the investigation is not over, but the decision has already been made. This is an unprecedented case.
You can get acquainted with other news, materials and statistics at Rio 2016, as well as in the sports department groups on social networks
The Russian team was suspended from the Paralympics in Rio. The head of the International Paralympic Committee, Philip Craven, explained: the athletes were disqualified because the membership of the Russian Paralympic Committee in the organization was suspended. According to Craven, some Russian athletes were doping before the Sochi Games, and sports organizations and the country's authorities covered it up. The International Paralympic Committee regrets that the Russians will not compete in Rio, but there is no other way out in this situation, Philip Craven emphasized.
“This decision was made in the best interests of the Paralympic movement. The governing body of the IPC is responsible for ensuring fair competition so that athletes can compete fairly under the same conditions. All athletes must play by the same rules. I hope it is clear to you that we asked further questions of Professor McLaren and his investigative team before making our decision. Further forensic analysis of the samples is being carried out. An invitation was sent to the Russian Paralympic Committee so that it could present its documents and materials to the IPC Executive Committee. We tried to establish all the facts, and we all learned that the state doping system exists in Russian sports. Unfortunately, such a program also applies to Russian Paralympic sports. The facts are very unpleasant, this is an unprecedented attack against all honest athletes who take part in these sports,” Craven emphasized.
Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko and President of the Russian Paralympic Committee Vladimir Lukin said that a lawsuit will be filed in the near future with the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne. According to Kommersant FM, this will happen on August 8. According to international rules, Russia has 21 days to appeal the decision to suspend the team. The Paralympics in Rio starts on September 7. The committee can achieve admission of the national team to the start of the competition, Minister Vitaly Mutko said on Rossiya 24.
“Of course, the chance remains, I’m absolutely sure. The team will continue to prepare, we will do everything to ensure that no one experiences any problems. And in parallel, the Paralympic Committee, as a member of the International Paralympic Committee, will defend its rights. It was necessary to simply invite the President of the Paralympic Committee, the Secretary General and openly show what our Paralympic Committee is being reproached for, what claims are being made against it. We read the transcript of the meeting where our leaders of the Paralympic Committee participated, there were no reproaches or complaints from anyone. We are ready to work calmly together with Mr. McLaren, the commission that the International Olympic Committee created. The Investigative Committee is studying this entire topic. I can say again: there were no government programs, there are no and there cannot be. Moreover, the RUSADA laboratory system is fully integrated into the WADA system,” Mutko noted.
The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, called the decision to bar the Paralympic team from competing in Rio vile and inhumane. She wrote about this on her Facebook page. Kommersant FM interviewed representatives of Paralympic organizations. They are confident that Russia will be able to defend the rights of its athletes in court.
The head of the International Paralympic Committee, Philip Craven, said on August 7 that a total of 45 altered doping samples had been identified 44 Russian athletes-participants of the Games in Sochi. Initially, the McLaren report mentioned 35 such cases.
The International Paralympic Committee refused to allow the Russian team to participate in the Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro. The team was suspended from the Games in full force, the decision can be appealed within 21 days
The Russian team will not participate in the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro: The International Paralympic Committee has suspended the entire team from participation in these competitions. This was reported by Reuters with reference to a statement by the President of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Philip Craven.
The team will not go to the Paralympics because the IPC has suspended the membership of the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC). “We spent quite a lot of time studying the McLaren report, listened to the Russian side, but they were unable to prove that they were right,” Craven said and announced the suspension of membership of the Russian Paralympic Committee.
The head of the IPC said that the anti-doping system in Russia is broken, corrupt and completely compromised. According to Craven, the IPC had no other solution than to suspend the Russian Paralympic Committee. He also promised that all doping samples of Russian athletes from the 2014 Paralympics will be checked in the next few months. Craven also stated that there is evidence that doping samples were tampered with during the Paralympics in Sochi.
An IPC statement released later said the Russian government had failed its athletes catastrophically. “Their medals were put above moral values, and this seems disgusting to me. The total corruption of the anti-doping system is contrary to the rules and strikes at the very heart of Paralympic sport. This approach demonstrates a blatant disregard for the health and well-being of athletes,” Craven said.
“Their thirst for glory at any cost has seriously damaged the unity and image of the sport in general and led to devastating consequences for the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) and Paralympians,” said the head of the IPC.
Russia will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne against the competition in Rio de Janeiro, Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said. “We are filing a claim with CAS. We will fight for our Paralympians,” the minister said. The decision of the IPC can be appealed within 21 days.
Earlier on Saturday, August 6, the Guardian newspaper wrote that it had already been accepted and the International Paralympic Committee could only announce it. The basis for the removal of the Russian Paralympic team was the report of Richard McLaren, which stated that violations of doping rules allegedly occurred systematically in Russia.
The report of the independent commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), led by Richard McLaren, was published on July 18. In it, Russia was actually accused of creating a state system for substituting doping samples. The International Olympic Committee decided to allow the Russian Olympic team to compete subject to a number of strict conditions.
The decision on whether the Russian Paralympic team will go to the 2016 Paralympics in Rio will be made on Tuesday, August 23, in the morning, and the verdict will be made by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne. This was announced by the head of the International Paralympic Committee, Philip Craven. Let us remind you that on August 7, the International Paralympic Committee suspended all Russian Paralympians from the Games. The official reason for the suspension was a report on doping in Russian sports prepared by Richard McLaren.
Paralympics 2016: will the Russian team go to Rio?
Note that the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro will be held from September 7 to 18. Meanwhile, uncertainty regarding participation in the 2016 Paralympics Russian athletes is still preserved. Despite this, Russian Paralympians continue to prepare for the Games, still hoping for a positive outcome. The Court of Arbitration for Sport will deliver its verdict on August 23. Experts and lawyers, predicting the outcome of this event, disagree. We can say that the probability of both verdicts - positive and negative - is approximately equal.
Let us add that the 2016 Summer Paralympics includes 22 sports, in which a total of 528 sets of medals will be competed. 4,350 athletes from 176 countries will take part in the 2016 Paralympic Games, excluding the Russian national team and its athletes. Thus, the official list of participants will be approved a couple of days before the start of the Paralympics.
