No Russia for Rio? - WADA/McLaren report set to recommend blanket ban

On Monday WADA (World Anti Doping Agency) will publish lawyer Richard McLaren's report into allegations of widespread and systematic doping in Russian sport, and it seems very likely that they will recommend that Russia is banned from the Rio Olympics across all sports, including gymnastics, not just track and field as it is at present.  The allegations have been made by Dr Grigory Rodchenkov, former head of a Moscow anti-doping lab, based on his experience of testing at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

WADA does not have the authority to ban a country from the Olympics, but if their report proves that cheating has been systematic and coordinated at the highest level, they can recommend sanctions to the IOC (International Olympic Committee).  The IOC has already enacted a ban against Russian track and field athletics, but whether they would consider banning a country across the entire range of Olympic sports is unclear.

'In May Mr. Bach [Thomas Bach, President of the IOC (International Olympic Committee] said he would apply a “zero-tolerance” policy and would not rule out bans against Russia across entire sports, like track and field. But last month he defended the Russian Olympic Committee, distancing the organization from the sports ministry. Dr. Rodchenkov, however, said he took direct orders from Russia’s deputy sports minister, Yuri Nagornykh, who is a member of Russia’s Olympic Committee.'

Russia's response to this is to emphasise and contextualise WADA's role in world sport - 

'Russia’s sports ministry has admitted to doping problems in recent months but denied government involvement. In an interview with The Times in Moscow this month, Vitaly Mutko, Russia’s sports minister, diminished the power of Mr. McLaren’s commission and WADA, which have the ability to make recommendations such as the ones the antidoping officials and athletes are prepared to do. The I.O.C. and sports federations have ultimate authority over who competes at the Games.

“Recommendations?” Mr. Mutko said. “It’s about the decisions. With respect to the commission, they do not determine the fate of world sport.”'

RRG's take on this?  It would be harsh to penalise all of the athletes from one country across all sports on the basis of evidence taken from a limited range of winter sports at a home Games.  The testing systems of other sports such as weightlifting have been found to be flawed on an international level, but have not attracted similar heavy sanctions.  Banning all Russian athletes across all sports would  be unjust and perhaps even unlawful given the limitations of the investigation and the time available for any necessary processes of justice.  

The recommendation to ban is essentially a sanction against Russia's flawed testing system, rather than providing justice for the individual athletes and sports affected, clean or not.

On the other hand, it is said that the report proves that the Russian Ministry of Sport has been ordering the labs to tamper with evidence.  If so, this questions Russia's ability to support its clean athletes - as well as to punish those who are cheating.  If the McLaren Report demonstrates that there is Government involvement in cheating, it may be difficult to argue in Russia's favour.  

It is unclear how the IOC will react, especially considering that the Games are only three weeks away, leaving little time for processes of justice to take place.  The Russian teams are travelling to Rio on the 24th July.  If gymnastics - one of the cleanest sports there is - loses out, it would be a tragedy not just for Russia, but for the whole of sport.  

You can read the latest reports on this developing story at the New York Times - follow this link - http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/17/sports/olympics/russia-doping-summer-games-rio.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=first-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=1

UPDATE 18.05 17/7 - Pat Hickey, Pres of the European Olympic Committee, doubts the fairness and independence of the McLaren report http://eurolympic.org/en/news-mobile-eng/3743-statement-by-pat-hickey-president-of-the-european-olympic-committees.html