The officials behind Russia’s state-sponsored doping should apologise to their athletes, according to Paralympic committee member Craig Spence.<\/p>\n
Russia’s 267-strong team has been banned from next month’s Paralympic Games in Rio because of state-sponsored doping uncovered in the McLaren Report.<\/p>\n
“We feel great sympathy for those athletes,” Spence told the BBC.<\/p>\n
“But I think the apology needs to come from those who are leading this state-sponsored doping programme in Russia.”<\/p>\n
Russian athletes were permitted to compete at the Rio Olympic Games if their sport’s governing body allowed them, but the International Paralympic Committee has taken a tougher stance.<\/p>\n
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) announced on Tuesday that they hadupheld the International Paralympic Committee’s (IPC) ban on all Russian competitors.<\/p>\n
Russia’s Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said: “The investigation about the Russian doping is a thick and disgusting mix containing 80% of politics and 20% of the actual doping, the politics targeting against sports, Russian athletes and Russia as a country.”<\/p>\n
Russian TV on Tuesday carried interviews with Paralympic athletes denied the chance to compete in Rio, among them track-and-field athlete Alexei Ashapatov.<\/p>\n
“When they tell us that we do not meet Paralympic standards, I don’t know what to do,” he said. “You do all you can to develop Paralympic sports and then you are accused of not meeting those standards.<\/p>\n
“I don’t understand the officials who made such a harsh decision.”<\/p>\n
Andrei Strokin, five-time Paralympic swimming champion, said the decision was “cynical” and “baseless”.<\/p>\n
However, Spence – the IPC’s director of media and communications – insisted it was those behind the Russian doping system who should shoulder the blame.<\/p>\n
“It’s because of them – the people at the very top – who have introduced this system where there’s doping across all sports as shown in the McLaren Report,” said Spence.<\/p>\n
“It is they who are responsible for this and that is why we have had to take this decision.<\/p>\n
“It needs to change or the Russian Paralympic Committee will continue to be suspended, or won’t be able to compete in further Paralympic Games or IPC sanctioned world championships.”<\/p>\n
A further appeal by Russia to Switzerland’s federal court is possible, but it is unlikely to take place before the Games open in Rio on 7 September.<\/p>\n
“Long-term we hope this is a catalyst for Russia and that the state-sponsored doping system which is plaguing their sport at the moment disappears,” Spence told BBC Radio 5 live.<\/p>\n
“We really want the Russian team back competing, but we only want that to happen if we can ensure a level playing field for all our athletes.”<\/p>\n
–<\/p>\n
Source: BBC<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The officials behind Russia’s state-sponsored doping should apologise to their athletes, according to Paralympic committee member Craig Spence. Russia’s 267-strong team has been banned from next month’s Paralympic Games in Rio because of state-sponsored doping uncovered in the McLaren Report. “We feel great sympathy for those athletes,” Spence told the BBC. “But I think the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":242429,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n