Russian track and field athletes remain banned

Omnisports

June 16, 2016 11:16 PM

The IAAF's ban on Russian track and field athletes remains in place, with just seven weeks until the Olympic Games get under way in Rio.

___4559129___https:______static.pulse.com.gh___webservice___escenic___binary___4559129___2016___6___18___18___athleticsgeneric-cropped_1u63gia7rz9vz1g7g0pjblnoxi

Russian track and field athletes are a step closer to missing the Rio Olympic Games after the IAAF decided to uphold a ban that was imposed following allegations of state-sponsored doping.

The country's athletes were suspended from international competition by the IAAF last November in light of a damning report from the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) independent commission.

On Friday, the IAAF Council met in Vienna to decide whether Russia has done enough to tackle the issues and the verdict from athletics' governing body was that the ban will not be lifted, with the Rio Games just seven weeks away.

However, Russian athletes could yet be given the chance to compete in Brazil, with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) due to hold a meeting next week to discuss the matter, amid concerns innocent athletes will be punished.

In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Sport announced it was "extremely disappointed" by the IAAF's decision to uphold the ban.

It added: "We have done everything possible since the ban was first imposed to regain the trust of the international community. We have nothing to hide and feel we had met the IAAF's conditions for re-entry.

"We now appeal to the members of the International Olympic Committee to not only consider the impact that our athletes' exclusion will have on their dreams and the people of Russia, but also that the Olympics themselves will be diminished by their absence."

An IAAF taskforce was set up in order to monitor Russia's anti-doping reforms after the All-Russia Athletic Federation accepted its suspension without requesting a hearing.

Rune Andersen, independent chair of the IAAF taskforce, said in March that Russia still had "significant work to be done" in order to meet the verification criteria for re-entry to international competition.

And the IAAF have not been satisfied that Russia have done what was asked of them.

At a news conference in Vienna, IAAF president Sebastian Coe said: "Although good progress has been made, the IAAF Council was unanimous that RUSAF [the Russian athletics federation] had not met the reinstatement conditions and that Russian athletes could not credibly return to international competition wihtout undermining the confidence of their competitors and the public.

"As a result, RUSAF has not been reinstated the membership of the IAAF at this stage."

Omnisports

Enhance Your Pulse News Experience!

Get rewards worth up to $20 when selected to participate in our exclusive focus group. Your input will help us to make informed decisions that align with your needs and preferences.

I've got feedback!