Sebastian Coe, IAAF president, said Russia would be banned from next year's Olympics unless it convinces the world it has cleaned up its act on doping. The sport's governing body provisionally suspended Russia's track and field federation last week, four days after the country was accused of operating a vast, state-sponsored doping program in a damning report by a World Anti-Doping Agency commission.
The move bars Russia from all international track and field competition for an indefinite period, including the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, until the country is judged to have fixed its problems and fallen into line with global anti-doping rules.
Coe called the decision - approved 22-1 in a secret vote of the IAAF council via teleconference - "the toughest sanction we can apply at this time." It's the first time the International Association of Athletics Federations has ever banned a country over its doping failures.
"The whole system has failed the athletes, not just in Russia but around the world," Coe said after a meeting that lasted nearly 3 1/2 hours. "This has been a shameful wake-up call and we are clear that cheating at any level will not be tolerated."
"It makes me angry," added Coe, a two-time Olympic 1,500-meter champion from Britain. "We find ourselves in a shameful position tonight." Coe, who was elected IAAF president in August, had been under heavy pressure to take tough action, despite efforts by Russian officials to avoid a blanket ban by agreeing to cooperate and make reforms in their anti-doping system.
"This is not about politics, this is about protection of clean athletes," Coe said. "It is why our council has sent such a strong message." Coe said Russia will need to fulfill "a list of criteria" to win reinstatement. An independent inspection team led by Norwegian anti-doping expert Rune Andersen will be appointed in the next few days to verify Russia's progress.
Still uncertain is whether the Russian federation will be able to reform in time for its athletes to compete at the Rio Games, which run from Aug. 5-21.
"It is entirely up to the Russian federation and Russia to enact those changes," Coe said. "Our verification team will be tough. ... It is for the IAAF and no other organization to make that judgment. We will get the change that we want and only then will Russian athletes be able to return to competition."
Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said he was hopeful Russia would be able to compete at the world indoor championships in Portland, Oregon, from March 17-20. "Anyway, the main thing is the Olympics," he said. Unless the Russian federation voluntarily accepts a full suspension, the IAAF will hold a hearing to elevate the provisional penalty to a full suspension.
