Media: Russia could be completely disqualified from participating in 2016 Olympics
As reported by the German magazine Der Spiegel, citing participants at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) summit in Lausanne, the IOC can completely remove Russia from the 2016 Olympics or restrict the number of sports in which they can participate.
As noted, such a scenario will be discussed; however, the agenda of the summit will be determined by IOC president Thomas Bach. According to media reports, he will first discuss this matter with Russian President Vladimir Putin with whom he maintains a friendly relationship.
Whether individual athletes or the National Olympic Committee of Russia are not allowed to participate in the Olympics, it will be an “historical decision.”
Earlier, the IAAF Council (The International Association of Athletics Federations) upheld the disqualification of Russian track and field participants; therefore, those athletes will have to miss the games. The IOC Executive board approved the decision.
Russian athletics have come under scrutiny over the last several months after it became known that many Russian athletes took banned performance enhancing drugs. These athletes have been stripped of their awards and have been prohibited from participating in international competitions.