Hopeless. Announced at the gates of redemption, Russian sport has just taken several steps back. Here he is once again threatened with suspension.
The World Anti-Doping Agency confirmed Tuesday January 1 via a press release: Russia has exceeded the deadline of December 31, 2018, at midnight, to open the doors of the Moscow analysis laboratory and let the team of experts of WADA have access to its data.
« WADA confirmed on Tuesday that since December 21, no further missions to Russia have been conducted. specifies the Montreal-based organization. The deadline given to the Russian authorities to comply with WADA's requirements has now passed. It constituted one of the conditions set for a lifting of sanctions against the Russian anti-doping agency.
On an official mission to Moscow, the five WADA experts led by Spaniard José Antonio Pascual were unable to extract the thousands of raw data stored in the anti-doping laboratory. In question, a handful of supposedly technical requirements imposed at the last minute by the Russian authorities.
Reaction from Craig Reedie, the president of the AMA: “ I am bitterly disappointed. » We understand it. The British leader did not hesitate to climb to the front line to facilitate Russia's return to the game, despite heavy criticism.
The following ? Uncertain. WADA specifies this in its press release: the report of the expert mission sent to Moscow on December 21, but left with empty pockets, will be entrusted in the days to come to the conformity review committee.
Its members will meet on January 14 and 15 to examine the follow-up to the case. “ On January 14-15, 2019, the committee will meet to review these items and make recommendations to the WADA Executive Committee. says Craig Reedie. Unless there is a turnaround, always possible in the Olympic world, he could declare the Russian anti-doping agency (RUSADA) non-compliant. It would be accompanied, logically, by a new suspension of Russian sport.
Craig Reedie himself seems resigned to having to add a few episodes to a soap opera that he would happily do without. On Tuesday, January 1, he wrote to the Russian Minister of Sports, Pavel Kolobkov, to inform him of the planned follow-up. It looks inevitable.
The reactions of Russia's detractors were not long in coming. As is often the case, the most bitter came from the United States. Travis Tygart, the head of the American anti-doping agency (USADA), did not wait for WADA's press release to call for sanctions. “ It's a joke, a shame for WADA and the global anti-doping system.", he protests.
Thomas Bach does not seem to share his indignation. The IOC President did not officially react to WADA's announcement. But he mentioned the case of Russia in his message of greetings for the year 2019, published on the website of the Olympic institution.
« With its suspension from the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics, the Russian Olympic Committee has served its sentence, while in other organizations proceedings are still ongoing., wrote Thomas Bach. A very direct way of meaning that, for the IOC, Russia must find its place. And, by extension, announce that the country would not be excluded from the Tokyo 2020 Games. Difficult to understand.