End of journey for Yuri Ganus? Likely. The director of the Russian anti-doping agency (RUSADA) could very soon be shown the exit door. The agency's supervisory board recommended his dismissal on Wednesday, August 5, following an audit that revealed infractions in the management of the organization. Very critical of Russian sports authorities since his appointment in 2017 as head of RUSADA, Yuri Ganus now seems destined to quickly disappear from the landscape. Today he is paying for his outspokenness and his accusations against the Moscow regime, at a time when Russia is still under suspension of the Olympic movement for a period of 4 years. “ Of course that this is revenge, it's a struggle, he confided to theAFP. What we say does not please, even though we are fighting for clean sport. » His fate is not yet completely sealed. It is still possible that the two bodies behind the creation of RUSADA, the Russian Olympic and Paralympic committees, decide to leave him in place, aware that his dismissal would certainly not help Russia's cause in its dispute with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), now in the hands of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Yuri Ganus knows this. According to him, his sidelining could lead to “ even heavier penalties” against Russian sport. But the scales are not really tipping in his favor. Only one of the seven members of the RUSADA supervisory board, Sergei Khytchikov, voted on Wednesday August 5 against the recommendation to dismiss him. He explained it to the agency TASS : " I consider this decision to be unfounded and unfair. I also consider it bad for RUSADA and Russian anti-doping. » But the other six spoke in favor of his dismissal. Unsurprisingly, WADA was quick to react to the announcement of a possible dismissal of the head of Russian anti-doping. In a statement, she declared: extremely concerned to learn of this recommendation. » WADA insists: “ The recommendation made today raises important questions regarding the credibility of the judicial process in this matter and the reasons behind this recommendation. »
