Canoeing&#39;s governing body has banned five Russians, including a gold medallist and a five-times world champion, from next month&#39;s Rio Olympics after an explosive independent report revealed state-run doping across Russian sport. 
 
&quot;We are clear that if you step out of line you won`t make the start line,&quot; International Canoe Federation secretary general Simon Toulson said, as canoeing became the latest sport to bar Russians from the Games in the fall-out over the roiling doping controversy. 
 
Their exclusion takes the number of Russians banned from taking part in Rio to 18 since Sunday when the International Olympic Committee decided not to issue a blanket ban on all Russian competitors, instead leaving it up to each sport to decide what to do. 
 
&quot;The International Canoe Federation (ICF) has taken swift action to remove five Russian canoe sprint athletes from the Rio Olympic Games following the release of additional information naming those implicated by the McLaren report,&quot; the ICF said. 
 
&quot;In each case the ICF will impose an immediate suspension pending further investigation making the offending athletes ineligible to compete at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.&quot; 
 
The five were named as Elena Aniushina, Natalia Podolskaya, Alexander Dyachenko, Andrey Kraitor and Alexey Korovashkov. 
 
Korovashkov, a five-times world champion, won a bronze medal in London four years ago and Dyachenko won gold in a doubles kayak sprint. 
 
The Olympics begin on August 5. 
 
(AFP)

Their exclusion takes the number of Russians banned from taking part in Rio to 18 since Sunday after IOC decided not to issue blanket ban

Canoeing's governing body has banned five Russians, including a gold medallist and a five-times world champion, from next month's Rio Olympics after an explosive independent report revealed state-run doping across Russian sport. "We are clear that if you step out of line you won`t make the start line," International Canoe Federation secretary general Simon Toulson said, as canoeing became the latest sport to bar Russians from the Games in the fall-out over the roiling doping controversy. Their exclusion takes the number of Russians banned from taking part in Rio to 18 since Sunday when the International Olympic Committee decided not to issue a blanket ban on all Russian competitors, instead leaving it up to each sport to decide what to do. "The International Canoe Federation (ICF) has taken swift action to remove five Russian canoe sprint athletes from the Rio Olympic Games following the release of additional information naming those implicated by the McLaren report," the ICF said. "In each case the ICF will impose an immediate suspension pending further investigation making the offending athletes ineligible to compete at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games." The five were named as Elena Aniushina, Natalia Podolskaya, Alexander Dyachenko, Andrey Kraitor and Alexey Korovashkov. Korovashkov, a five-times world champion, won a bronze medal in London four years ago and Dyachenko won gold in a doubles kayak sprint. The Olympics begin on August 5. (AFP)

Five Russian canoers, including five-times world champion Korovashkov, banned from Rio

Russian Yulia Efimova, who has been banned from competing at next month&#39;s Rio Olympics by swimming&#39;s international governing body FINA, will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), her agent said yesterday. 
 
&quot;We&#39;ve taken the decision to appeal to CAS. The opponent will be the International Olympic Committee, FINA and the Russian Olympic Committee,&quot; Efimova&#39;s agent Andrei Mitkov told R-Sport. 
 
FINA yesterday banned seven Russians, including 2012 Olympic bronze medallist Efimova, from competing in Rio in the fall-out from Russia&#39;s rampant state-run doping. 
 
FINA was the first sport to impose bans in light of Sunday&#39;s International Olympic Committee (IOC) decision, which ruled against a blanket ban on all Russian competitors in Rio, instead leaving it up to individual sports federations to decide whether to accept Russians. 
 
Vladimir Morozov and Nikita Lobintsev, both 4x100m freestyle bronze-medal winners with the Russian team at the 2012 Olympics, and Efimova, who won bronze in the 200m breaststroke in London, were among the seven banned. 
 
Efimova had been provisionally suspended by FINA in March after testing positive for the banned drug meldonium, which has been prohibited since January. 
 
FINA lifted Efimova&#39;s suspension in May after the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said that athletes could escape a ban because it does not know exactly how long it takes for meldonium to leave the body. 
 
The 24-year-old is also four-time world champion in the breaststroke. 
 
(AFP)

International Swimming Federation yesterday banned seven Russians from competing in Rio Olympics after Russia's state-run doping was exposed

Russian Yulia Efimova, who has been banned from competing at next month's Rio Olympics by swimming's international governing body FINA, will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), her agent said yesterday. "We've taken the decision to appeal to CAS. The opponent will be the International Olympic Committee, FINA and the Russian Olympic Committee," Efimova's agent Andrei Mitkov told R-Sport. FINA yesterday banned seven Russians, including 2012 Olympic bronze medallist Efimova, from competing in Rio in the fall-out from Russia's rampant state-run doping. FINA was the first sport to impose bans in light of Sunday's International Olympic Committee (IOC) decision, which ruled against a blanket ban on all Russian competitors in Rio, instead leaving it up to individual sports federations to decide whether to accept Russians. Vladimir Morozov and Nikita Lobintsev, both 4x100m freestyle bronze-medal winners with the Russian team at the 2012 Olympics, and Efimova, who won bronze in the 200m breaststroke in London, were among the seven banned. Efimova had been provisionally suspended by FINA in March after testing positive for the banned drug meldonium, which has been prohibited since January. FINA lifted Efimova's suspension in May after the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said that athletes could escape a ban because it does not know exactly how long it takes for meldonium to leave the body. The 24-year-old is also four-time world champion in the breaststroke. (AFP)

Russian swimmer Efimova to appeal Rio ban to Sport Arbitration Court

US anti-doping chiefs blasted the International Olympic Committee for creating &quot;a confusing mess&quot; over the Russian doping scandal, claiming they lacked &quot;decisive leadership&quot; by opting against a blanket Rio ban for Russia. 
 
The IOC decided against an all-out ban over state-run doping and left international sports federations with the job of clearing athletes for the Games which start on August 5. 
 
&quot;Disappointingly, in response to the most important moment for clean athletes and the integrity of the Olympic Games, the IOC has refused to take decisive leadership,&quot; said Travis T Tygart, the chief executive of USADA, the American anti-doping body. 
 
&quot;The decision regarding Russian participation and the confusing mess left in its wake is a significant blow to the rights of clean athletes.&quot; 
 
&quot;It is so frustrating that in this incredibly important moment, they would pass the baton to sports federations who may lack the adequate expertise or collective will to appropriately address the situation within the short window prior to the Games. The conflict of interest is glaring.&quot; 
 
USADA also hit out at the decision to ban doping whistleblower Yuliya Stepanova from taking part in the Olympics. 
 
&quot;The decision to refuse her entry in to the Games is incomprehensible and contrary to CAS precedent. The attempt to enforce it will undoubtedly deter whistleblowers in the future from coming forward,&quot; said Tygart. 
 
(AFP)

The US anti-doping body also hit out at the decision to ban doping whistleblower Yuliya Stepanova from taking part in the Olympics

US anti-doping chiefs blasted the International Olympic Committee for creating "a confusing mess" over the Russian doping scandal, claiming they lacked "decisive leadership" by opting against a blanket Rio ban for Russia. The IOC decided against an all-out ban over state-run doping and left international sports federations with the job of clearing athletes for the Games which start on August 5. "Disappointingly, in response to the most important moment for clean athletes and the integrity of the Olympic Games, the IOC has refused to take decisive leadership," said Travis T Tygart, the chief executive of USADA, the American anti-doping body. "The decision regarding Russian participation and the confusing mess left in its wake is a significant blow to the rights of clean athletes." "It is so frustrating that in this incredibly important moment, they would pass the baton to sports federations who may lack the adequate expertise or collective will to appropriately address the situation within the short window prior to the Games. The conflict of interest is glaring." USADA also hit out at the decision to ban doping whistleblower Yuliya Stepanova from taking part in the Olympics. "The decision to refuse her entry in to the Games is incomprehensible and contrary to CAS precedent. The attempt to enforce it will undoubtedly deter whistleblowers in the future from coming forward," said Tygart. (AFP)

US anti-doping CEO: Russia verdict blow to rights of clean athletes

Russia insisted today that it expects to avoid a blanket ban from the IOC on its competitors at the Rio Olympics despite its track and field squad losing an appeal over a suspension for state-sponsored doping. 
 
&quot;All sportsmen who have not been convicted or are not under suspicion of doping should have the right to compete. That is the decision we are counting on,&quot; Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. 
 
The International Olympic Committee&#39;s executive board are to hold a conference call on Sunday to discuss banning Russia from the Rio Games starting on August 5. 
 
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Thursday ruled against Russia&#39;s athletes in a decision seen as a key indicator as the IOC debates whether to kick out the whole Russian team. 
 
The IOC is facing international pressure to act tough on Russia and ban the entire team over bombshell revelations of a state-run doping system that has seen the country cheat its way to victory. 
 
Fourteen national anti-doping agencies including the United States, Canada and Germany sent a joint letter to IOC President Thomas Bach on Thursday urging him to ban Russia from Rio. 
 
Officials in Moscow have slammed the decision by CAS to reject its appeal against a ban from the world athletics body IAAF, calling it part of a broader political campaign by the West against Russia. 
 
The suspension of the track and field team already means that star athletes like pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva and hurdler Sergey Shubenkov will not be in Rio. 
 
Isinbayeva who has threatened to call time on her career over the ban slammed the CAS ruling as a &quot;funeral for athletics.&quot; 
 
Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko who has clung on despite the scandal said Moscow now hopes the IOC will defer to individual international sporting federations to decide whether other Russian squads can compete. 
 
Cold War 
 
The CAS ruling has been the focus of Olympic attention since an independent WADA report this week said Russia ran a &quot;state-dictated failsafe system&quot; of drug cheating in 30 sports at the 2014 Sochi Games and other major events. 
 
But Russia has found support from some international sports bodies, with the International Judo Federation (IJF) insisting all clean athletes should be allowed to take part in Rio. 
 
&quot;We hope that by allowing participation of Russian athletes in Rio 2016, we will send out a positive message to all the young people who deserve to be given examples of friendship instead of examples of Cold War,&quot; said IJF president Marius Vizer. 
 
Individual Russian federations said they were now looking nervously ahead for the IOC to make its next move. 
 
&quot;We&#39;re all in suspense waiting for the IOC decision,&quot; wrestling federation president Mikhail Mamiashvili told AFP. 
 
&quot;I hope that the common sense and personal responsibility of those who will take the decision will prevail.&quot; 
 
The IAAF banned all of the Russian track and field team over allegations of state-sponsored doping but said athletes who prove they were not tainted by their country&#39;s corrupt system could be cleared. 
 
The IAAF has only gave permission for one Russian team member to compete as a neutral is US-based long jumper Darya Klishina to compete in Rio. 
 
The IOC has appeared to back the principle that international sporting federations could clear individual athletes in case of a blanket ban but with just two weeks to go until Rio time is slipping away. 
 
The Russian press had widely predicted that CAS would decide against Moscow and reaction was a mixture of soul-searching and criticism over systemic failings. 
 
&quot;They accused us of setting up a system in the country based on doping and we didn&#39;t react at all to these accusations,&quot; wrote daily Sovietsky Sport. &quot;That&#39;s why they&#39;re banning us.&quot; 
 
&quot;Alas, everything that is happening with our sports is the fruit of our own errors,&quot; a column in usually pro-Kremlin tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda said, citing years of mismanagement. 
 
&quot;It is far from certain that even the current apocalyptic storm will force us to change our sport. Maybe only if the IOC buries our team on Sunday.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

International Olympic Committee's executive board are to hold a conference call on Sunday to discuss banning Russia from the Rio Games

Russia insisted today that it expects to avoid a blanket ban from the IOC on its competitors at the Rio Olympics despite its track and field squad losing an appeal over a suspension for state-sponsored doping. "All sportsmen who have not been convicted or are not under suspicion of doping should have the right to compete. That is the decision we are counting on," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. The International Olympic Committee's executive board are to hold a conference call on Sunday to discuss banning Russia from the Rio Games starting on August 5. The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Thursday ruled against Russia's athletes in a decision seen as a key indicator as the IOC debates whether to kick out the whole Russian team. The IOC is facing international pressure to act tough on Russia and ban the entire team over bombshell revelations of a state-run doping system that has seen the country cheat its way to victory. Fourteen national anti-doping agencies including the United States, Canada and Germany sent a joint letter to IOC President Thomas Bach on Thursday urging him to ban Russia from Rio. Officials in Moscow have slammed the decision by CAS to reject its appeal against a ban from the world athletics body IAAF, calling it part of a broader political campaign by the West against Russia. The suspension of the track and field team already means that star athletes like pole vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva and hurdler Sergey Shubenkov will not be in Rio. Isinbayeva who has threatened to call time on her career over the ban slammed the CAS ruling as a "funeral for athletics." Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko who has clung on despite the scandal said Moscow now hopes the IOC will defer to individual international sporting federations to decide whether other Russian squads can compete. Cold War The CAS ruling has been the focus of Olympic attention since an independent WADA report this week said Russia ran a "state-dictated failsafe system" of drug cheating in 30 sports at the 2014 Sochi Games and other major events. But Russia has found support from some international sports bodies, with the International Judo Federation (IJF) insisting all clean athletes should be allowed to take part in Rio. "We hope that by allowing participation of Russian athletes in Rio 2016, we will send out a positive message to all the young people who deserve to be given examples of friendship instead of examples of Cold War," said IJF president Marius Vizer. Individual Russian federations said they were now looking nervously ahead for the IOC to make its next move. "We're all in suspense waiting for the IOC decision," wrestling federation president Mikhail Mamiashvili told AFP. "I hope that the common sense and personal responsibility of those who will take the decision will prevail." The IAAF banned all of the Russian track and field team over allegations of state-sponsored doping but said athletes who prove they were not tainted by their country's corrupt system could be cleared. The IAAF has only gave permission for one Russian team member to compete as a neutral is US-based long jumper Darya Klishina to compete in Rio. The IOC has appeared to back the principle that international sporting federations could clear individual athletes in case of a blanket ban but with just two weeks to go until Rio time is slipping away. The Russian press had widely predicted that CAS would decide against Moscow and reaction was a mixture of soul-searching and criticism over systemic failings. "They accused us of setting up a system in the country based on doping and we didn't react at all to these accusations," wrote daily Sovietsky Sport. "That's why they're banning us." "Alas, everything that is happening with our sports is the fruit of our own errors," a column in usually pro-Kremlin tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda said, citing years of mismanagement. "It is far from certain that even the current apocalyptic storm will force us to change our sport. Maybe only if the IOC buries our team on Sunday." (AFP)

Russia braces for IOC ruling after CAS bans athletics squad

A judge on Tuesday suspended the WhatsApp smartphone messaging service across Brazil, where it is hugely popular, for failing to surrender user data in a police investigation, the court said. 
 
&quot;WhatsApp is blocked across the whole national territory,&quot; a spokesman for the court in Rio de Janeiro told AFP. 
 
WhatsApp, owned by Facebook, has clashed several times with Brazilian courts after refusing to give access to police. 
 
The 19-page ruling said that Brazilian telephone operators must &quot;immediately suspend&quot; WhatsApp services and also said that continued non-compliance would see the Facebook company fined 50,000 Reais ($15,265) a day. 
 
The decision by Judge Daniela Barbosa Assun??o de Souza in the southeastern state of Rio de Janeiro applies to Brazil&#39;s five wireless carriers. The reason for the order was not known due to legal secrecy in an ongoing case, and will only be lifted once Facebook surrenders data, Souza&#39;s office said. 
 
Shortly after the ruling was filed, WhatsApp messaging continued to function in Rio, however. It was not clear how quickly the order would be fulfilled. 
 
A spokeswoman for WhatsApp said she had no immediate comment. 
 
(Agencies)

The reason for the order was not known due to legal secrecy in an ongoing case and will only be lifted once Facebook surrenders data

A judge on Tuesday suspended the WhatsApp smartphone messaging service across Brazil, where it is hugely popular, for failing to surrender user data in a police investigation, the court said. "WhatsApp is blocked across the whole national territory," a spokesman for the court in Rio de Janeiro told AFP. WhatsApp, owned by Facebook, has clashed several times with Brazilian courts after refusing to give access to police. The 19-page ruling said that Brazilian telephone operators must "immediately suspend" WhatsApp services and also said that continued non-compliance would see the Facebook company fined 50,000 Reais ($15,265) a day. The decision by Judge Daniela Barbosa Assun??o de Souza in the southeastern state of Rio de Janeiro applies to Brazil's five wireless carriers. The reason for the order was not known due to legal secrecy in an ongoing case, and will only be lifted once Facebook surrenders data, Souza's office said. Shortly after the ruling was filed, WhatsApp messaging continued to function in Rio, however. It was not clear how quickly the order would be fulfilled. A spokeswoman for WhatsApp said she had no immediate comment. (Agencies)

Brazil blocks Facebook's WhatsApp

The crackdown on athletes caught up in recent doping scandals is a step in the right direction for the sport, Allyson Felix says, but the American sprinter is still worried it will not be a level playing field at next month&#39;s Rio Olympics. 
 
The 30-year-old qualified for her fourth Olympics earlier this month but will not be gunning for a 200-400 metres double after finishing fourth over the shorter distance at the US trials in Oregon. 
 
Athletics has been under the spotlight due to a doping scandal that saw Russia banned from competing in the sport at the Rio Games after a World Anti-Doping Agency report uncovered systematic abuse in the country. 
 
Kenya&#39;s team were also in danger of missing Rio before their government passed legislation that complied with anti-doping codes. 
 
&quot;The number of scandals we see now just shows the real issues that are there in sports,&quot; Felix told reporters in Beverley Hills. &quot;I would say that my confidence isn&#39;t high to think that there are not real issues.&nbsp;I would hope that the playing field is more level (but) it is very hard to deal with as a clean athlete.&nbsp;You are going to the biggest race of your life and you hope that that is a clean race. But can you say that you are a 100 per cent that you are sure?&nbsp;I don&#39;t think that you can say that.&quot; 
 
Felix said athletics was working hard to clean up the sport. 
 
&quot;It is hard ... but I hope we are moving in the right direction,&quot; she added. &quot;I think that exposing athletes that are happening now is I think is a step in the right direction.&quot; 
 
Felix, who won the 200 at the London Games in 2012, had been attempting to do a 200-400 double at Rio but battled an ankle injury in the leadup to the trials in Oregon.&nbsp;The injury had affected her conditioning and she failed to qualify for the 200 by 0.01 seconds. 
 
&quot;I think that what happened to me was just unfortunate. I think injuries are a part of sport and it is something that you just have to deal with,&quot; she added.&nbsp;&quot;For me I feel so grateful to have made this team at all as two months ago I was not walking at all.&nbsp;So it&#39;s pretty amazing to me that I&#39;m still going to Rio and while it doesn&#39;t look exactly how I hoped it would. But I&#39;m still going after it with everything I have.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

'...My confidence isn't high to think that there are not real issues...it is very hard to deal with as a clean athlete'--Allyson Felix

The crackdown on athletes caught up in recent doping scandals is a step in the right direction for the sport, Allyson Felix says, but the American sprinter is still worried it will not be a level playing field at next month's Rio Olympics. The 30-year-old qualified for her fourth Olympics earlier this month but will not be gunning for a 200-400 metres double after finishing fourth over the shorter distance at the US trials in Oregon. Athletics has been under the spotlight due to a doping scandal that saw Russia banned from competing in the sport at the Rio Games after a World Anti-Doping Agency report uncovered systematic abuse in the country. Kenya's team were also in danger of missing Rio before their government passed legislation that complied with anti-doping codes. "The number of scandals we see now just shows the real issues that are there in sports," Felix told reporters in Beverley Hills. "I would say that my confidence isn't high to think that there are not real issues. I would hope that the playing field is more level (but) it is very hard to deal with as a clean athlete. You are going to the biggest race of your life and you hope that that is a clean race. But can you say that you are a 100 per cent that you are sure? I don't think that you can say that." Felix said athletics was working hard to clean up the sport. "It is hard ... but I hope we are moving in the right direction," she added. "I think that exposing athletes that are happening now is I think is a step in the right direction." Felix, who won the 200 at the London Games in 2012, had been attempting to do a 200-400 double at Rio but battled an ankle injury in the leadup to the trials in Oregon. The injury had affected her conditioning and she failed to qualify for the 200 by 0.01 seconds. "I think that what happened to me was just unfortunate. I think injuries are a part of sport and it is something that you just have to deal with," she added. "For me I feel so grateful to have made this team at all as two months ago I was not walking at all. So it's pretty amazing to me that I'm still going to Rio and while it doesn't look exactly how I hoped it would. But I'm still going after it with everything I have." (Reuters)

American sprinter doubts Olympic competitors are clean

UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) has been heavily criticised for its handling of information relating to a doctor who was allegedly supplying athletes with banned substances. 
 
The agency, a national organisation committed to drug-free sport, commissioned an independent review after claims aired in the Sunday Times that Dr Mark Bonar had provided more than 150 elite athletes with performance-enhancing drugs. 
 
Amateur cyclist Dan Stevens turned whistleblower in the hope of reducing his suspension after he was banned for two years for breaching anti-doping rules in 2014. 
 
But the review&#39;s report censured UKAD for failing to pursue claims against Bonar and for not contacting his professional body, the General Medical Council. 
 
While praising UKAD staff for their &quot;transparency&quot; and commitment to clean sport, the report was scathing about certain parts of the investigation into Bonar. 
 
&quot;It is difficult to understand why no contact was made with the GMC when that course of action was suggested on at least seven occasions either by members of UKAD, the athlete (Stevens) and his legal representatives,&quot; said the review&#39;s chairman, former Merseyside assistant chief constable Andy Ward. 
 
He added that &quot;as a minimum standard of investigation, a simple check&quot; with the GMC should have been made to find out if it, as Bonar`s regulatory body, had any information that could &quot;support or negate&quot; Stevens claims. 
 
UKAD was also criticised for not giving Stevens a more lenient sentence after his cooperation, with Ward highlighting the &quot;confusion and lack of clarity&quot; as to how the agency deals with dopers seeking to reduce their sanction in return for &quot;substantial assistance&quot;. 
 
He described UKAD&#39;s dismissal of Stevens request for a lesser punishment as &quot;harsh&quot; and &quot;subjective&quot;. 
 
That dismissal prompted Stevens to take his story to the Sunday Times, which then filmed the London-based Bonar claiming he had supplied prohibited drugs to more than 150 top-level athletes. 
&nbsp; 
Those claims, which were published by the newspaper in April, have now been investigated by UKAD, and the agency did eventually share its findings with the GMC. Bonar has since denied any wrongdoing. 
 
&quot;It is clear that opportunities to gather intelligence, secure evidence and investigate Bonar have been missed,&quot; Ward concluded. 
 
(AFP)

A review set up by the agency has censured it for failing to pursue claims that a doctor supplied drugs to more than 150 athletes

UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) has been heavily criticised for its handling of information relating to a doctor who was allegedly supplying athletes with banned substances. The agency, a national organisation committed to drug-free sport, commissioned an independent review after claims aired in the Sunday Times that Dr Mark Bonar had provided more than 150 elite athletes with performance-enhancing drugs. Amateur cyclist Dan Stevens turned whistleblower in the hope of reducing his suspension after he was banned for two years for breaching anti-doping rules in 2014. But the review's report censured UKAD for failing to pursue claims against Bonar and for not contacting his professional body, the General Medical Council. While praising UKAD staff for their "transparency" and commitment to clean sport, the report was scathing about certain parts of the investigation into Bonar. "It is difficult to understand why no contact was made with the GMC when that course of action was suggested on at least seven occasions either by members of UKAD, the athlete (Stevens) and his legal representatives," said the review's chairman, former Merseyside assistant chief constable Andy Ward. He added that "as a minimum standard of investigation, a simple check" with the GMC should have been made to find out if it, as Bonar`s regulatory body, had any information that could "support or negate" Stevens claims. UKAD was also criticised for not giving Stevens a more lenient sentence after his cooperation, with Ward highlighting the "confusion and lack of clarity" as to how the agency deals with dopers seeking to reduce their sanction in return for "substantial assistance". He described UKAD's dismissal of Stevens request for a lesser punishment as "harsh" and "subjective". That dismissal prompted Stevens to take his story to the Sunday Times, which then filmed the London-based Bonar claiming he had supplied prohibited drugs to more than 150 top-level athletes. Those claims, which were published by the newspaper in April, have now been investigated by UKAD, and the agency did eventually share its findings with the GMC. Bonar has since denied any wrongdoing. "It is clear that opportunities to gather intelligence, secure evidence and investigate Bonar have been missed," Ward concluded. (AFP)

UK Anti-Doping criticised for handling of doping claims

The IAAF&#39;s Doping Review Board has turned down applications from 67 Russian athletes to compete internationally as &quot;neutral&quot; individuals, following a blanket ban on the country&#39;s track and field athletes for systematic doping. 
 
The All-Russian Athletics Federation (ARAF) said in a statement today it was informed by the sport&#39;s world governing IAAF that only one application had been approved, from long jumper Darya Klishina, out of 68 requests made. 
 
&quot;The rest of the 67 athletes who have been approved by the ARAF&#39;s board as they have fulfilled the federation&#39;s criteria to compete in the Olympics have been refused,&quot; ARAF said on its website. 
 
The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) suspended Russia&#39;s track and field athletes last year after a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) report uncovered systematic state-sponsored doping in the country. 
 
The ban was extended last month, which ruled Russia&#39;s athletes out of next month&#39;s Rio Olympics, although ARAF has appealed against the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and it is due to rule on the case by July 21. 
 
Individual Russian athletes, however, could apply to the IAAF for exemptions to compete as a &quot;neutral athlete&quot; if they could prove they were not involved in the system and were subjected to drug tests outside the country. 
 
However, the 25-year-old Klishina, who finished 10th in the long jump at last year&#39;s world championships in Beijing, was the only one of the 68 athletes approved by ARAF who has been cleared by the IAAF to compete internationally as a &quot;neutral&quot;. 
 
Klishina&#39;s was one of 136 appeals to the IAAF under the neutral athlete provisions and most of the applications had been reviewed, the IAAF had said on Saturday. 
 
Russian doping whistleblower Yulia Stepanova&#39;s application to compete as an individual was accepted by the IAAF on July 1. She competed in the 800 metres at the European Athletics Championships on Wednesday although she pulled up injured. 
 
The former drug cheat&#39;s revelations helped expose the massive doping problem in her country and she left Russia and went into hiding after disclosing the issue. 
 
She is still waiting to hear from the International Olympic Committee whether she can participate in the Rio Games. 
 
Legal possibilities 
 
ARAF said today it would carry on fighting against the IAAF&#39;s decisions and added that the country&#39;s athletes were continuing to prepare for the Olympics, which start on Aug. 5. 
 
&quot;The ARAF does not agree with the decision taken by the IAAF&#39;s Council from June 17 (to extend the blanket ban) and the decision from the IAAF&#39;s Doping Review Board on July 10 in regard to the Russian athletes,&quot; said the ARAF statement. 
 
&quot;The ARAF will use all legal possibilities in order that Russian athletes will get the chance to take part in the Olympics. 
 
&quot;Russian athletes are continuing to prepare for the most important event in four years, and together with the Russian Sports Ministry and the Russian Olympic Committee we will take all the necessary technical and organisational steps in order to prepare the Russian track and field team for the Olympic Games.&quot; 
 
&quot;The federation is fighting for the right of clean sportsmen and is waiting for a decision from CAS,&quot; ARAF added. 
 
Klishina&#39;s best performance at a senior global event was fourth at the world indoor championships in Istanbul in 2012. She has finished seventh twice at the world outdoor championships in 2013 in Moscow and in 2014 in Sopot. 
 
&quot;The IAAF Doping Review Board has agreed that Russian long jump athlete Darya Klishina meets the exceptional eligibility criteria to compete in international competition as a neutral athlete,&quot; the IAAF said on its website. 
 
&quot;Darya Klishina&#39;s participation as a neutral athlete in international competition is still subject to acceptance by the organiser of the competition in question, in accordance with the rules of that competition,&quot; it added. 
 
(Reuters)

The All-Russian Athletics Federation said today that it will carry on fighting against the IAAF's decisions

The IAAF's Doping Review Board has turned down applications from 67 Russian athletes to compete internationally as "neutral" individuals, following a blanket ban on the country's track and field athletes for systematic doping. The All-Russian Athletics Federation (ARAF) said in a statement today it was informed by the sport's world governing IAAF that only one application had been approved, from long jumper Darya Klishina, out of 68 requests made. "The rest of the 67 athletes who have been approved by the ARAF's board as they have fulfilled the federation's criteria to compete in the Olympics have been refused," ARAF said on its website. The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) suspended Russia's track and field athletes last year after a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) report uncovered systematic state-sponsored doping in the country. The ban was extended last month, which ruled Russia's athletes out of next month's Rio Olympics, although ARAF has appealed against the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and it is due to rule on the case by July 21. Individual Russian athletes, however, could apply to the IAAF for exemptions to compete as a "neutral athlete" if they could prove they were not involved in the system and were subjected to drug tests outside the country. However, the 25-year-old Klishina, who finished 10th in the long jump at last year's world championships in Beijing, was the only one of the 68 athletes approved by ARAF who has been cleared by the IAAF to compete internationally as a "neutral". Klishina's was one of 136 appeals to the IAAF under the neutral athlete provisions and most of the applications had been reviewed, the IAAF had said on Saturday. Russian doping whistleblower Yulia Stepanova's application to compete as an individual was accepted by the IAAF on July 1. She competed in the 800 metres at the European Athletics Championships on Wednesday although she pulled up injured. The former drug cheat's revelations helped expose the massive doping problem in her country and she left Russia and went into hiding after disclosing the issue. She is still waiting to hear from the International Olympic Committee whether she can participate in the Rio Games. Legal possibilities ARAF said today it would carry on fighting against the IAAF's decisions and added that the country's athletes were continuing to prepare for the Olympics, which start on Aug. 5. "The ARAF does not agree with the decision taken by the IAAF's Council from June 17 (to extend the blanket ban) and the decision from the IAAF's Doping Review Board on July 10 in regard to the Russian athletes," said the ARAF statement. "The ARAF will use all legal possibilities in order that Russian athletes will get the chance to take part in the Olympics. "Russian athletes are continuing to prepare for the most important event in four years, and together with the Russian Sports Ministry and the Russian Olympic Committee we will take all the necessary technical and organisational steps in order to prepare the Russian track and field team for the Olympic Games." "The federation is fighting for the right of clean sportsmen and is waiting for a decision from CAS," ARAF added. Klishina's best performance at a senior global event was fourth at the world indoor championships in Istanbul in 2012. She has finished seventh twice at the world outdoor championships in 2013 in Moscow and in 2014 in Sopot. "The IAAF Doping Review Board has agreed that Russian long jump athlete Darya Klishina meets the exceptional eligibility criteria to compete in international competition as a neutral athlete," the IAAF said on its website. "Darya Klishina's participation as a neutral athlete in international competition is still subject to acceptance by the organiser of the competition in question, in accordance with the rules of that competition," it added. (Reuters)

IAAF turns down 67 Russian applications to compete as individuals

United States-based long jumper Darya Klishina became the first Russian athlete today to be cleared to compete at the Rio Olympics, but the fate of pole vault star Yelena Isinbayeva was still up in the air. 
 
The IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations), which has suspended the Russian track and field team over state-sponsored doping, said it had given the go-ahead for Klishina to compete in international competition as a &#39;neutral&#39;, ahead of the Rio Games next month. 
 
&quot;The IAAF Doping Review Board has today agreed that Russian long jump athlete Darya Klishina meets the exceptional eligibility criteria to compete in international competition as a neutral athlete,&quot; the IAAF said in a statement.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The Doping Review Board received a total of 136 applications from Russian athletes seeking exceptional eligibility to compete in an individual capacity,&quot; the statement said.&nbsp; 
 
The Russian Olympic Committee said that of the 136 who applied to the IAAF to compete, only Klishina had been accepted.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Rejections have come for everyone, except for Klishina,&quot; Alexandra Brilliantova, the head of the Olympic Committee&#39;s legal department, told state-run TASS news agency.&nbsp; 
 
Among those rejected were gold medallist pole vaulter Isinbayeva and world champion hurdler Sergey Shubenkov, trainers for the two athletes both based in Russia confirmed. 
 
Russian track and field stars, including Isinbayeva, still hoping to go to Rio now hope that the Court of Arbitrations for Sport (CAS) will overturn the blanket ban. 
 
Russia, last month, had its suspension over allegations of institutionalised and pervasive doping upheld by the IAAF, athletics ruling body. 
 
But it left the door ajar to some Russian competitors not tainted by doping to compete as neutrals in Rio.&nbsp; 
 
CAS said Monday it will decide whether to overturn the ban by July 21, two weeks before the start of the Rio Games.&nbsp; 
 
(AFP)

The Russian Olympic Committee said that of the 136 who applied to the IAAF to compete, only Darya Klishina had been accepted

United States-based long jumper Darya Klishina became the first Russian athlete today to be cleared to compete at the Rio Olympics, but the fate of pole vault star Yelena Isinbayeva was still up in the air. The IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations), which has suspended the Russian track and field team over state-sponsored doping, said it had given the go-ahead for Klishina to compete in international competition as a 'neutral', ahead of the Rio Games next month. "The IAAF Doping Review Board has today agreed that Russian long jump athlete Darya Klishina meets the exceptional eligibility criteria to compete in international competition as a neutral athlete," the IAAF said in a statement. "The Doping Review Board received a total of 136 applications from Russian athletes seeking exceptional eligibility to compete in an individual capacity," the statement said. The Russian Olympic Committee said that of the 136 who applied to the IAAF to compete, only Klishina had been accepted. "Rejections have come for everyone, except for Klishina," Alexandra Brilliantova, the head of the Olympic Committee's legal department, told state-run TASS news agency. Among those rejected were gold medallist pole vaulter Isinbayeva and world champion hurdler Sergey Shubenkov, trainers for the two athletes both based in Russia confirmed. Russian track and field stars, including Isinbayeva, still hoping to go to Rio now hope that the Court of Arbitrations for Sport (CAS) will overturn the blanket ban. Russia, last month, had its suspension over allegations of institutionalised and pervasive doping upheld by the IAAF, athletics ruling body. But it left the door ajar to some Russian competitors not tainted by doping to compete as neutrals in Rio. CAS said Monday it will decide whether to overturn the ban by July 21, two weeks before the start of the Rio Games. (AFP)

Darya?Klishina only Russian athlete to be cleared to compete as 'neutral' at Rio 2016

Russian breastroke swimmer Vitalina Simonova has been suspended for four years after testing positive for a banned substance, the International Swimming Federation (FINA) has announced. 
 
The test result related to an out of competition sample the 23-year-old gave on June 29, 2015 during a training camp in Naoussa, Greece, where testosterone was found. 
 
The ban is backdated and runs until June 28, 2019, FINA said in a statement on its official website.&nbsp; 
 
The Russian won bronze at the 2014 European Championships in the medley relay and claimed silver at the 2013 European short course championships in the 200 metres breaststroke.&nbsp; 
 
Simonova, who was not selected to compete at this year&#39;s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, intends to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the suspension. 
 
&quot;The banned substance was in a dietary supplement, but it was not indicated on the packaging,&quot; Simonova told the R-Sport news agency.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;I am upset that our arguments have not been listened to, but I intend to carry on and will look to defend myself at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. I have no intention of retiring,&quot; she added. 
 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

Vitalina Simonova, who was not selected to compete at this year's Rio Olympics, intends to appeal to CAS against the suspension

Russian breastroke swimmer Vitalina Simonova has been suspended for four years after testing positive for a banned substance, the International Swimming Federation (FINA) has announced. The test result related to an out of competition sample the 23-year-old gave on June 29, 2015 during a training camp in Naoussa, Greece, where testosterone was found. The ban is backdated and runs until June 28, 2019, FINA said in a statement on its official website. The Russian won bronze at the 2014 European Championships in the medley relay and claimed silver at the 2013 European short course championships in the 200 metres breaststroke. Simonova, who was not selected to compete at this year's Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, intends to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the suspension. "The banned substance was in a dietary supplement, but it was not indicated on the packaging," Simonova told the R-Sport news agency. "I am upset that our arguments have not been listened to, but I intend to carry on and will look to defend myself at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. I have no intention of retiring," she added. (Reuters)

Russian swimmer Simonova gets four-year doping ban

Australia&#39;s cricket board has banned two players for betting on matches and given a suspended ban to a third as part of its &quot;zero tolerance&quot; approach to gambling-related corruption. 
 
Hayley Jensen and Corinne Hall, who play in the national women&#39;s league and women&#39;s domestic Twenty20 tournament, were both given two-year bans with 18 months suspended, Cricket Australia (CA) said in a media release on Wednesday. 
 
Jensen had admitted placing one bet on the result of the men&#39;s test match between Australia and New Zealand in Brisbane last November.&nbsp;Hall had made two bets relating to two matches in the men&#39;s domestic one-day competition in 2015-16. 
 
&quot;Jensen and Hall are prohibited from participating in any form of cricket or cricket-related event for a period of six months until 21 October 2016,&quot; CA said. 
 
Joel Logan, who plays for South Australia in the men&#39;s domestic competition, was sanctioned for placing two bets on the winner of the World T20 tournament. 
 
Logan was also given a two-year ban but it was wholly suspended due to &quot;circumstances relating to his match contracts and the specific timing&quot; of his bets.&nbsp;All three players were required to participate in anti-corruption education programs, the board said. 
 
&ldquo;We take a proactive, zero-tolerance approach to maintaining the integrity of our sport and this includes any form of betting on cricket globally,&quot; CA&#39;s integrity boss Iain Roy said. 
 
&quot;These players have accepted the seriousness of their errors and have voluntarily accepted their sanctions.&quot; 
 
CA in February banned 19-year-old woman cricketer Piepa Cleary for six months, with another 18 months suspended, for placing six bets on a men&#39;s test match between Australia and New Zealand in November. 
 
That followed a two-year suspended sentence given to Sydney-based women&#39;s cricketer Angela Reakes in December for placing five bets on the man-of-the-match for last year&#39;s cricket World Cup final. 
 
World cricket has been rocked by a number of gambling-related scandals in recent years. 
 
Three Pakistani players were banned from cricket and jailed in 2011 after they were convicted of criminal charges related to spot-fixing in a test match during their tour of England the previous year. 
 
(Reuters)

In its drive to clean up the sport, Cricket Australia has penalised two women and one man for gambling

Australia's cricket board has banned two players for betting on matches and given a suspended ban to a third as part of its "zero tolerance" approach to gambling-related corruption. Hayley Jensen and Corinne Hall, who play in the national women's league and women's domestic Twenty20 tournament, were both given two-year bans with 18 months suspended, Cricket Australia (CA) said in a media release on Wednesday. Jensen had admitted placing one bet on the result of the men's test match between Australia and New Zealand in Brisbane last November. Hall had made two bets relating to two matches in the men's domestic one-day competition in 2015-16. "Jensen and Hall are prohibited from participating in any form of cricket or cricket-related event for a period of six months until 21 October 2016," CA said. Joel Logan, who plays for South Australia in the men's domestic competition, was sanctioned for placing two bets on the winner of the World T20 tournament. Logan was also given a two-year ban but it was wholly suspended due to "circumstances relating to his match contracts and the specific timing" of his bets. All three players were required to participate in anti-corruption education programs, the board said. “We take a proactive, zero-tolerance approach to maintaining the integrity of our sport and this includes any form of betting on cricket globally," CA's integrity boss Iain Roy said. "These players have accepted the seriousness of their errors and have voluntarily accepted their sanctions." CA in February banned 19-year-old woman cricketer Piepa Cleary for six months, with another 18 months suspended, for placing six bets on a men's test match between Australia and New Zealand in November. That followed a two-year suspended sentence given to Sydney-based women's cricketer Angela Reakes in December for placing five bets on the man-of-the-match for last year's cricket World Cup final. World cricket has been rocked by a number of gambling-related scandals in recent years. Three Pakistani players were banned from cricket and jailed in 2011 after they were convicted of criminal charges related to spot-fixing in a test match during their tour of England the previous year. (Reuters)

Australian cricket board slaps bans on three players for betting

Athletics&#39; governing body the IAAF and the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) have agreed to let the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rule on whether Russian athletes can compete at the Rio Games, CAS said on Monday. 
 
The ROC, the International Association of Athletics Federations and 68 Russian athletes have reached &quot;a specific arbitration agreement&quot; which lets CAS decide whether the IAAF`s blanket ban of the entire Russian track and field team was valid, a CAS statement said.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;The parties have agreed to an expedited procedure which should conclude on 21 July 2016,&quot; it added.&nbsp; 
 
The IAAF ban followed revelations of massive, state-sponsored doping within Russia`s track and field programme.&nbsp; 
 
The International Olympic Committee gave full backing to the IAAF move, saying it was up to each sport`s governing body to decide who can compete in Rio de Janeiro.&nbsp; 
 
Last month, the IAAF said only individual Russian athletes who could definitively prove they were not tainted by the country&#39;s disgraced system would be cleared for the Games, which start on August 5. 
 
CAS spokeswoman Katy Hogg told AFP that the court will not be making a case by case review of each athlete`s record, but will be assessing the validity of the IAAF&#39;s decision to ban the entire federation.&nbsp; 
 
Russian athletes and political leaders have voiced outrage that the IAAF was seeking to ban track and field stars with no positive drug tests on their record.&nbsp; 
 
The ROC and the 68 athletes have specifically asked the Lausanne-based court to &quot;order that any Russian athlete who is not currently the subject of any period of ineligibility for the commission of an anti-doping rule violation may participate at the 2016 Olympic Games,&quot; assuming they otherwise qualified. 
 
(AFP)

Russian athletes have voiced outrage that the IAAF was looking to ban track and field athletes with no positive drug test

Athletics' governing body the IAAF and the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) have agreed to let the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rule on whether Russian athletes can compete at the Rio Games, CAS said on Monday. The ROC, the International Association of Athletics Federations and 68 Russian athletes have reached "a specific arbitration agreement" which lets CAS decide whether the IAAF`s blanket ban of the entire Russian track and field team was valid, a CAS statement said. "The parties have agreed to an expedited procedure which should conclude on 21 July 2016," it added. The IAAF ban followed revelations of massive, state-sponsored doping within Russia`s track and field programme. The International Olympic Committee gave full backing to the IAAF move, saying it was up to each sport`s governing body to decide who can compete in Rio de Janeiro. Last month, the IAAF said only individual Russian athletes who could definitively prove they were not tainted by the country's disgraced system would be cleared for the Games, which start on August 5. CAS spokeswoman Katy Hogg told AFP that the court will not be making a case by case review of each athlete`s record, but will be assessing the validity of the IAAF's decision to ban the entire federation. Russian athletes and political leaders have voiced outrage that the IAAF was seeking to ban track and field stars with no positive drug tests on their record. The ROC and the 68 athletes have specifically asked the Lausanne-based court to "order that any Russian athlete who is not currently the subject of any period of ineligibility for the commission of an anti-doping rule violation may participate at the 2016 Olympic Games," assuming they otherwise qualified. (AFP)

Sports court to rule on Russian athletes competing at Rio by July 21

World athletics federation IAAF has&nbsp;come closer to destroying sport in Russia than helping it develop by suspending the country&#39;s track and field team over doping offences, the Russian sport minister said. 
 
First imposed in November, the IAAF ban was extended on Friday and supported by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Saturday. 
 
&quot;I have written an open letter to (the IAAF)... If you are an organisation whose aim is to develop athletics then you have done everything to destroy it,&quot; Vitaly Mutko told Reuters in an interview. 
 
Russian track and field athletes had not participated in international competitions in January. 
 
&quot;I, on behalf of the state, cannot finance the country&#39;s national team. That means all this is falling apart. Next, I cannot finance the training centre, all these are closing down. The young athletes do not have any motivation,&quot; Mutko said. 
 
Individual Russian track and field athletes assessed as clean will be able to compete for their country in Brazil, IOC President Thomas Bach said on Tuesday, diluting the IAAF&#39;s ban. 
 
International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach also said all competitors from both Russia and Kenya would, given their countries&#39; recent history of doping, have to be screened individually before being allowed to participate in the Games. 
 
He did not elaborate on what the evaluation would include. 
 
The Russian track and field team remains suspended from Rio de Janeiro after the IOC supported the ban, for systemic doping, which world athletics federation IAAF had extended on Friday. 
 
But Bach, speaking at the end of a summit on doping, offered a limited number of Russian athletes the chance to race under their flag. 
 
In a decision welcomed by the sports ministry in Moscow, he said those cleared by the IAAF or the Court of Arbitration for Sport as clean and eligible would be able to compete in Brazil. 
 
The unsatisfactory record of anti-doping bodies in Russia, as well as Kenya, had put &quot;very serious doubts on the presumption of innocence&quot; of their athletes, Bach said. 
 
But they had the right of appeal and &quot;if there are (Russian) athletes qualified then they will compete as members of the Russian Olympic Committee team,&quot; he told reporters. 
 
The IAAF had said on Friday that any Russian athlete would have to compete under a neutral flag, a recommendation it reiterated on Tuesday following Bach&#39;s comments. 
 
&quot;This decision has been unequivocally supported across sport and the IOC Summit today unanimously agreed to fully respect the IAAF decision,&quot; the federation said in a statement. 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp;

However, Russia's sports minister has said that the suspensions are destroying sport in the country

World athletics federation IAAF has come closer to destroying sport in Russia than helping it develop by suspending the country's track and field team over doping offences, the Russian sport minister said. First imposed in November, the IAAF ban was extended on Friday and supported by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Saturday. "I have written an open letter to (the IAAF)... If you are an organisation whose aim is to develop athletics then you have done everything to destroy it," Vitaly Mutko told Reuters in an interview. Russian track and field athletes had not participated in international competitions in January. "I, on behalf of the state, cannot finance the country's national team. That means all this is falling apart. Next, I cannot finance the training centre, all these are closing down. The young athletes do not have any motivation," Mutko said. Individual Russian track and field athletes assessed as clean will be able to compete for their country in Brazil, IOC President Thomas Bach said on Tuesday, diluting the IAAF's ban. International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach also said all competitors from both Russia and Kenya would, given their countries' recent history of doping, have to be screened individually before being allowed to participate in the Games. He did not elaborate on what the evaluation would include. The Russian track and field team remains suspended from Rio de Janeiro after the IOC supported the ban, for systemic doping, which world athletics federation IAAF had extended on Friday. But Bach, speaking at the end of a summit on doping, offered a limited number of Russian athletes the chance to race under their flag. In a decision welcomed by the sports ministry in Moscow, he said those cleared by the IAAF or the Court of Arbitration for Sport as clean and eligible would be able to compete in Brazil. The unsatisfactory record of anti-doping bodies in Russia, as well as Kenya, had put "very serious doubts on the presumption of innocence" of their athletes, Bach said. But they had the right of appeal and "if there are (Russian) athletes qualified then they will compete as members of the Russian Olympic Committee team," he told reporters. The IAAF had said on Friday that any Russian athlete would have to compete under a neutral flag, a recommendation it reiterated on Tuesday following Bach's comments. "This decision has been unequivocally supported across sport and the IOC Summit today unanimously agreed to fully respect the IAAF decision," the federation said in a statement. (Reuters)

IOC offers Rio lifeline to Russian track and field athletes

Craig Reedie, the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency, indicated today that he would be prepared to back a complete ban for the entire Russia team from August&#39;s Olympic Games in Rio. 
 
The founding president of WADA, Dick Pound, told Britain&#39;s Sunday Times newspaper that such a ban was &quot;not impossible&quot;. 
 
Friday saw the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) uphold an international ban on Russia&#39;s track and field competitors first imposed in November after a WADA team led by veteran Canadian sports administrator Pound revealed state-sponsored doping and mass corruption in Russian athletics.&nbsp; 
 
The Russia team is now ruled out of all events in athletics in Rio, although Russian athletes training outside the country can apply to compete as neutrals at the August 5-21 event in Brazil. 
 
The IAAF&#39;s decision was endorsed by the International Olympic Committee on Saturday. 
 
But there are fears that the scale of Russia&#39;s breaking of doping rules extend beyond just track and field. 
 
In May, WADA set up a new investigation under Professor Richard McLaren, a Canadian law professor and longstanding member of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), into allegations of state-backed doping at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics in Russia. 
 
Grigory Rodchenkov, the former head of the Russian lab now living in Los Angeles, also gave an interview to the New York Times last month in which he said he switched tainted urine samples for clean ones at the doping lab used for the Sochi Games, with help from people he believed to be officers of the Russian security services. 
 
McLaren, who is due to deliver his full report by July 15, said in a preliminary statement on Friday he had evidence that Russia&#39;s Ministry of Sport was involved in instructing a Moscow laboratory to &quot;not report positive sample results over the period before, during and after&quot; the 2013 World Athletics Championships. 
 
&quot;In the coming weeks, we will learn the outcome of our independent McLaren investigation,&quot; Reedie, speaking at the WADA symposium at London`s Lord&#39;s Cricket Ground, said Monday. 
 
&quot;If his report indicates transgressions of any kind, then there will be a precedent-setting opportunity to demonstrate our collective commitment to cleaning up sport,&quot; added the veteran British sports administrator, who reiterated WADA&#39;s support for the IAAF ban on Russia. 
 
&quot;The world will be watching.&quot; 
 
Reedie said the fact anti-doping laboratories in Beijing, Bloemfontein, Lisbon, Madrid and Moscow had all had their WADA accreditation suspended was proof that the organisation had taken &quot;decisive action&quot; by hearing the &quot;strength of the athlete&#39;s voice&quot; in insisting labs maintain the &quot;highest standards&quot;. 
 
This, said Reedie, was all part of &quot;levelling the playing field for each and every athlete competing in Rio&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
Meanwhile Reedie repeated his calls for increased WADA funding from national governments and also suggested that, for the first time, broadcasters and media rights-holders might want to contribute to the budget. 
 
Reedie said WADA was &quot;punching above its weight&quot; on a budget of less than $30 million a year, which he noted was less than the annual income of Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova, recently banned for a doping violation. 
 
Reedie added that 0.5 per cent of the worldwide sports television rights market would produce a WADA budget of $175 million and that it was in the rights-holders&#39; interest to promote clean sport. 
 
Russian President Vladmir Putin&nbsp;has labelled the IAAF&#39;s ban on his country&#39;s athletes as &quot;unjust and unfair&quot;. 
 
But IAAF president Sebastian Coe, who won Olympic 1500 metres gold and 800m silver for Great Britain at the 1980 Moscow Games, wrote in Britain&#39;s Sunday Telegraph: &quot;We have not prevented clean athletes from Russia from competing, rather the Russian system has cataclysmically failed their clean athletes.&quot; 
(AFP)

Russian athletes training outside the country can apply to compete as neutrals at the August event in Brazil

Craig Reedie, the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency, indicated today that he would be prepared to back a complete ban for the entire Russia team from August's Olympic Games in Rio. The founding president of WADA, Dick Pound, told Britain's Sunday Times newspaper that such a ban was "not impossible". Friday saw the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) uphold an international ban on Russia's track and field competitors first imposed in November after a WADA team led by veteran Canadian sports administrator Pound revealed state-sponsored doping and mass corruption in Russian athletics. The Russia team is now ruled out of all events in athletics in Rio, although Russian athletes training outside the country can apply to compete as neutrals at the August 5-21 event in Brazil. The IAAF's decision was endorsed by the International Olympic Committee on Saturday. But there are fears that the scale of Russia's breaking of doping rules extend beyond just track and field. In May, WADA set up a new investigation under Professor Richard McLaren, a Canadian law professor and longstanding member of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), into allegations of state-backed doping at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics in Russia. Grigory Rodchenkov, the former head of the Russian lab now living in Los Angeles, also gave an interview to the New York Times last month in which he said he switched tainted urine samples for clean ones at the doping lab used for the Sochi Games, with help from people he believed to be officers of the Russian security services. McLaren, who is due to deliver his full report by July 15, said in a preliminary statement on Friday he had evidence that Russia's Ministry of Sport was involved in instructing a Moscow laboratory to "not report positive sample results over the period before, during and after" the 2013 World Athletics Championships. "In the coming weeks, we will learn the outcome of our independent McLaren investigation," Reedie, speaking at the WADA symposium at London`s Lord's Cricket Ground, said Monday. "If his report indicates transgressions of any kind, then there will be a precedent-setting opportunity to demonstrate our collective commitment to cleaning up sport," added the veteran British sports administrator, who reiterated WADA's support for the IAAF ban on Russia. "The world will be watching." Reedie said the fact anti-doping laboratories in Beijing, Bloemfontein, Lisbon, Madrid and Moscow had all had their WADA accreditation suspended was proof that the organisation had taken "decisive action" by hearing the "strength of the athlete's voice" in insisting labs maintain the "highest standards". This, said Reedie, was all part of "levelling the playing field for each and every athlete competing in Rio". Meanwhile Reedie repeated his calls for increased WADA funding from national governments and also suggested that, for the first time, broadcasters and media rights-holders might want to contribute to the budget. Reedie said WADA was "punching above its weight" on a budget of less than $30 million a year, which he noted was less than the annual income of Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova, recently banned for a doping violation. Reedie added that 0.5 per cent of the worldwide sports television rights market would produce a WADA budget of $175 million and that it was in the rights-holders' interest to promote clean sport. Russian President Vladmir Putin has labelled the IAAF's ban on his country's athletes as "unjust and unfair". But IAAF president Sebastian Coe, who won Olympic 1500 metres gold and 800m silver for Great Britain at the 1980 Moscow Games, wrote in Britain's Sunday Telegraph: "We have not prevented clean athletes from Russia from competing, rather the Russian system has cataclysmically failed their clean athletes." (AFP)

World Anti-Doping Agency prepared to ban entire Russian team from Rio Olympics

A&nbsp;Pakistani actor has been banned from hosting a popular Ramzan TV show by the country&#39;s media regulator for allegedly violating its &quot;code of conduct&quot; by promoting controversial religious and sectarian views. 
 
The&nbsp;Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) said it banned Hamza Ali Abbasi from hosting the show after receiving numerous complaints from viewers over the show&#39;s controversial content which it claimed violated the media regulator&#39;s &quot;code of conduct.&quot; 
 
Abbasi surprised the&nbsp;Pakistani audience by speaking against the oppression of the minority, the Ahmadis, on his show Ishq-e-Ramazan. 
 
Abbasi also promised to have open discussions on his show on the country&#39;s controversial blasphemy laws and the government&#39;s decision to declare the minority Qadiani sect as non-Muslims. 
(PTI)

The?country's media regulatory authority banned actor Hamza Ali Abbasi for allegedly voicing sectarian views on the television show

A Pakistani actor has been banned from hosting a popular Ramzan TV show by the country's media regulator for allegedly violating its "code of conduct" by promoting controversial religious and sectarian views. The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) said it banned Hamza Ali Abbasi from hosting the show after receiving numerous complaints from viewers over the show's controversial content which it claimed violated the media regulator's "code of conduct." Abbasi surprised the Pakistani audience by speaking against the oppression of the minority, the Ahmadis, on his show Ishq-e-Ramazan. Abbasi also promised to have open discussions on his show on the country's controversial blasphemy laws and the government's decision to declare the minority Qadiani sect as non-Muslims. (PTI)

Pakistani?actor banned from hosting Ramzan TV show for promoting controversial religious views

Olympic skating champion Claudia Pechstein&#39;s claim damages against the International Skating Union (ISU) over a doping ban was ruled as inadmissible by a German court today. This dealt her years-long effort for compensation a crushing blow. 
 
The Federal Court of Justice decided the domestic courts should not hear her case after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), considered the highest sports tribunal, had rejected Pechstein&#39;s appeal over her ban. 
 
The five-time Olympic champion was seeking more than 4 million euros in damages from the ISU after it banned her for two years in 2009 over irregular blood results, although the German never failed a drugs test. 
 
She insisted, providing extensive scientific data, that she had a hereditary blood condition that her father also had. 
 
Her case had been seen as a litmus test, with a win potentially triggering a flood of doping cases being challenged in domestic courts around the world and eroding the position of CAS. She vowed to fight on at the Constitutional Court. 
 
The Federal Court, Germany&#39;s highest for civil and criminal jurisdiction, said an arbitration agreement between her and the ISU at the time she had tested positive, which ruled out taking the case to a domestic court, was valid. 
 
&quot;The anti-trust division of the Federal Court of Justice did not follow the argumentation of the plaintiff,&quot; it said in a statement. &quot;It decides that her suit is inadmissible as it is opposed by the defence of the arbitration agreement.&quot; 
 
The CAS rejected her appeal as did the Swiss Federal Tribunal. However, a Munich court said in 2015 that it would allow the 44-year-old skater to go ahead with a lawsuit. 
 
The skater said she would now take the case to the next stage, the Federal Constitutional Court. 
 
&quot;Despite this verdict I am not considering giving up,&quot; she wrote on her website. &quot;The battle for justice will be continued at the Federal Constitutional Court.&quot; 
 
Pechstein, who missed the 2010 Vancouver Games due to the ban, competed at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, narrowly missing out on medals in the 3,000m and 5,000m. 
 
The athlete has said she wants to compete at the 2018 winter Olympics in Pyeongchang in what would be her seventh Games.

After the International Skating Union had banned her for two years in 2009, the speed skater sought for more than 4 million euros in damages. However, she never failed a drug test

Olympic skating champion Claudia Pechstein's claim damages against the International Skating Union (ISU) over a doping ban was ruled as inadmissible by a German court today. This dealt her years-long effort for compensation a crushing blow. The Federal Court of Justice decided the domestic courts should not hear her case after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), considered the highest sports tribunal, had rejected Pechstein's appeal over her ban. The five-time Olympic champion was seeking more than 4 million euros in damages from the ISU after it banned her for two years in 2009 over irregular blood results, although the German never failed a drugs test. She insisted, providing extensive scientific data, that she had a hereditary blood condition that her father also had. Her case had been seen as a litmus test, with a win potentially triggering a flood of doping cases being challenged in domestic courts around the world and eroding the position of CAS. She vowed to fight on at the Constitutional Court. The Federal Court, Germany's highest for civil and criminal jurisdiction, said an arbitration agreement between her and the ISU at the time she had tested positive, which ruled out taking the case to a domestic court, was valid. "The anti-trust division of the Federal Court of Justice did not follow the argumentation of the plaintiff," it said in a statement. "It decides that her suit is inadmissible as it is opposed by the defence of the arbitration agreement." The CAS rejected her appeal as did the Swiss Federal Tribunal. However, a Munich court said in 2015 that it would allow the 44-year-old skater to go ahead with a lawsuit. The skater said she would now take the case to the next stage, the Federal Constitutional Court. "Despite this verdict I am not considering giving up," she wrote on her website. "The battle for justice will be continued at the Federal Constitutional Court." Pechstein, who missed the 2010 Vancouver Games due to the ban, competed at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, narrowly missing out on medals in the 3,000m and 5,000m. The athlete has said she wants to compete at the 2018 winter Olympics in Pyeongchang in what would be her seventh Games.

German court drops Claudia Pechstein's doping ban damages suit

European Union&nbsp;governments&nbsp;should not ban services like home-rental site&nbsp;Airbnb&nbsp;or ride-hailing app&nbsp;Uber&nbsp;except as a last resort, the&nbsp;EU&nbsp;says in new guidelines, seeking to rein in a crackdown on the &quot;sharing economy&quot;.

In guidelines seen by Reuters, the&nbsp;European Commission said any restrictions by&nbsp;EU&nbsp;member states on these new online services should be justified and proportionate to the public interest at stake.

&quot;Total bans of an activity constitute a measure of last resort that should be applied only if and where no less restrictive requirements to attain a public interest can be used,&quot; the draft document says.

In the case of room-renting sites like&nbsp;Airbnb, the Commission said&nbsp;banning&nbsp;short-term lets of apartments &quot;appears difficult to justify&quot; when limits on the maximum number of days apartments can be rented out would be more appropriate.

The guidelines will come as good news for the likes of&nbsp;Uber&nbsp;and&nbsp;Airbnb, which have faced outright bans or restrictions in some cities as established industry players complain of unfair competition.

Airbnb, founded in 2008, and&nbsp;Uber, launched a year later, both grew up in the hot-house San Francisco tech&nbsp;scene and almost from the start have faced regulatory battles across the United States, and&nbsp;more recently from&nbsp;around the world.

Both have become favourite targets of local officials and rival trade groups in&nbsp;Europe, with its tradition of strong social oversight.

In the &quot;sharing economy,&quot;&nbsp;customers use the internet to contract services such as ride-sharing, where amateur drivers displace professional taxi drivers, or home-sharing, which reduces hotel demand.

&quot;These services can fall within several sectors, falling under the regulatory burden of all of them,&quot; the Commission said.

A case in point is&nbsp;Uber,&nbsp;which considers itself merely a digital service connecting drivers and passengers, not&nbsp;a transport service, which would make it subject to more onerous rules on driver qualifications, road rules and insurance.

The&nbsp;EU&#39;s highest court is set to rule later this year or next on whether&nbsp;Uber&nbsp;is a transport company or a digital service.

 
LOCAL SKIRMISHES

Associations of taxi drivers have staged high-profile protests against&nbsp;Uber&nbsp;in France, Britain, Portugal, Spain and many other&nbsp;European countries since 2014.

Last year, French prosecutors staged a&nbsp;raid of&nbsp;Uber&#39;s Paris offices in a showdown over whether the company was violating a law to curtail online taxi services.

Uber&nbsp;suspended its&nbsp;UberPOP service, which relies on non-professional drivers, in Brussels last October after a court ordered it shut down.

The company reintroduced its service in Madrid in March after beating a hasty retreat from the market in 2014 following a court ruling against it.

Airbnb&nbsp;has faced loud criticism from city officials in Barcelona and Paris over its impact on local housing markets.

On May 1, Berlin officials implemented one of the world&#39;s toughest clampdowns on&nbsp;Airbnb. City officials have promised to reject 95 per cent of requests by landlords to rent out places on a short-term basis.

City officials have received more than 500 legal complaints over the murky provisions of the new law. A Berlin court on June 8 is handling the case of German&nbsp;Airbnb&nbsp;competitor Wimdu, which filed suit over the new regulation.

German hotel association IHA said in response to the&nbsp;EU&nbsp;guidelines: &ldquo;The current legal vacuum...comes at the expense of consumers, residents and taxpayers and distorts the competition to the (disadvantage) of the heavily regulated hotel industry&rdquo;.

European Union says governments should not ban services like home-rental site Airbnb or ride-hailing app Uber except as a last resort

European Union governments should not ban services like home-rental site Airbnb or ride-hailing app Uber except as a last resort, the EU says in new guidelines, seeking to rein in a crackdown on the "sharing economy". In guidelines seen by Reuters, the European Commission said any restrictions by EU member states on these new online services should be justified and proportionate to the public interest at stake. "Total bans of an activity constitute a measure of last resort that should be applied only if and where no less restrictive requirements to attain a public interest can be used," the draft document says. In the case of room-renting sites like Airbnb, the Commission said banning short-term lets of apartments "appears difficult to justify" when limits on the maximum number of days apartments can be rented out would be more appropriate. The guidelines will come as good news for the likes of Uber and Airbnb, which have faced outright bans or restrictions in some cities as established industry players complain of unfair competition. Airbnb, founded in 2008, and Uber, launched a year later, both grew up in the hot-house San Francisco tech scene and almost from the start have faced regulatory battles across the United States, and more recently from around the world. Both have become favourite targets of local officials and rival trade groups in Europe, with its tradition of strong social oversight. In the "sharing economy," customers use the internet to contract services such as ride-sharing, where amateur drivers displace professional taxi drivers, or home-sharing, which reduces hotel demand. "These services can fall within several sectors, falling under the regulatory burden of all of them," the Commission said. A case in point is Uber, which considers itself merely a digital service connecting drivers and passengers, not a transport service, which would make it subject to more onerous rules on driver qualifications, road rules and insurance. The EU's highest court is set to rule later this year or next on whether Uber is a transport company or a digital service. LOCAL SKIRMISHES Associations of taxi drivers have staged high-profile protests against Uber in France, Britain, Portugal, Spain and many other European countries since 2014. Last year, French prosecutors staged a raid of Uber's Paris offices in a showdown over whether the company was violating a law to curtail online taxi services. Uber suspended its UberPOP service, which relies on non-professional drivers, in Brussels last October after a court ordered it shut down. The company reintroduced its service in Madrid in March after beating a hasty retreat from the market in 2014 following a court ruling against it. Airbnb has faced loud criticism from city officials in Barcelona and Paris over its impact on local housing markets. On May 1, Berlin officials implemented one of the world's toughest clampdowns on Airbnb. City officials have promised to reject 95 per cent of requests by landlords to rent out places on a short-term basis. City officials have received more than 500 legal complaints over the murky provisions of the new law. A Berlin court on June 8 is handling the case of German Airbnb competitor Wimdu, which filed suit over the new regulation. German hotel association IHA said in response to the EU guidelines: “The current legal vacuum...comes at the expense of consumers, residents and taxpayers and distorts the competition to the (disadvantage) of the heavily regulated hotel industry”.

EU cautions governments against banning Uber, Airbnb

Companies should be allowed to prohibit staff from wearing the Islamic headscarf but only as part of a general ban on religious and political symbols, an adviser to the European Court of Justice said today.

The Islamic headscarf is a contentious issue in some European countries, particularly in France which attaches importance to the separation of state and religious institutions.

This is the first time Europe&#39;s highest court is handling a case on banning the headscarf, referred to it by a Belgian court hearing a compensation claim from a woman who was dismissed from her job for wearing an Islamic headscarf.

The woman was working as a receptionist for Belgian company G4S Secure Solutions, which has a general ban on wearing visible religious or political symbols.

The Belgian court asked the European Court of Justice whether forbidding the headscarf violated an EU law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of religion.

&quot;While an employee cannot &#39;leave&#39; his sex, skin colour, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age or disability &#39;at the door&#39; upon entering his employer&#39;s premises, he may be expected to moderate the exercise of his religion in the workplace,&quot; Juliane Kokott, the EU court&#39;s advocate general, wrote in her opinion published today.&nbsp;

The advocate general&#39;s findings are not binding but the EU court typically follows the adviser&#39;s recommendation. A ruling from the European Court of Justice is expected later this year. The Belgian court will rule on the matter thereafter.

There are already some headscarf bans in schools and public institutions in France and Belgium. However, Germany&#39;s top court last year struck down a ban on teachers wearing headscarves in schools.

Companies should be allowed to prohibit staff from wearing headscarf but only under general ban on religious and political symbols

Companies should be allowed to prohibit staff from wearing the Islamic headscarf but only as part of a general ban on religious and political symbols, an adviser to the European Court of Justice said today. The Islamic headscarf is a contentious issue in some European countries, particularly in France which attaches importance to the separation of state and religious institutions. This is the first time Europe's highest court is handling a case on banning the headscarf, referred to it by a Belgian court hearing a compensation claim from a woman who was dismissed from her job for wearing an Islamic headscarf. The woman was working as a receptionist for Belgian company G4S Secure Solutions, which has a general ban on wearing visible religious or political symbols. The Belgian court asked the European Court of Justice whether forbidding the headscarf violated an EU law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of religion. "While an employee cannot 'leave' his sex, skin colour, ethnicity, sexual orientation, age or disability 'at the door' upon entering his employer's premises, he may be expected to moderate the exercise of his religion in the workplace," Juliane Kokott, the EU court's advocate general, wrote in her opinion published today. The advocate general's findings are not binding but the EU court typically follows the adviser's recommendation. A ruling from the European Court of Justice is expected later this year. The Belgian court will rule on the matter thereafter. There are already some headscarf bans in schools and public institutions in France and Belgium. However, Germany's top court last year struck down a ban on teachers wearing headscarves in schools.

Employers can forbid headscarf if general ban in place - EU court adviser

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