The International Olympic Committee ( IOC) has asked the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to initiate disciplinary procedures against all those found to have violated doping rules.
The IOC Executive Board decided that all competitors, coaches and/or officials “who have participated in the Olympic Games and are accused of doping [link id=”10613″ text=”in the report”]” of the [link id=”340″ tax=”post_tag” text=”World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)”] Independent Commission on Monday should be punished, according to an official statement published on Tuesday.
With its zero-tolerance policy against doping, following the conclusion of the [link id=”175″ tax=”post_tag” text=”IAAF”] investigation, the [link id=”335″ tax=”post_tag” text=”IOC”] will take all “the necessary measures and sanctions” towards the alleged cheaters that could include “withdrawal and reallocation of medals and as the case may be exclusion of coaches and officials from future Olympic Games”, the statement added.
However, the IOC has said it had “no reason to question the credibility of the results of the anti-doping tests carried out at the Olympic Winter Games 2014,” as neither the WADA report, nor the WADA independent observer group at the games has made any mention of any documented irregularities linked to the Sochi 2014 Olympics.
“The IOC studied the functioning of the WADA accredited laboratory in Sochi during the Olympic Winter Games 2014 following the doubts expressed during the Independent Commission’s press conference,” the IOC said.
“In this context the IOC relies on the then report of the WADA independent observer group which makes no mention of any such irregularity. Nor was any such irregularity reported by the international experts involved, nor found by the IOC itself.
“Therefore, the IOC has no reason to question the credibility of the results of the anti-doping tests carried out at the Olympic Winter Games 2014.”
“However, the IOC retaining all the doping samples for ten years, will retest samples in an appropriate way should substantial doubts arise. In any case, the IOC may retest samples once new scientific techniques become available,” the statement concluded.
Meanwhile, the Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said he believed it would be inconceivable for Russia’s athletics teams not to take part in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, according to the RT.
“I would not like to consider such option. We have young sportsmen, for whom it will be their first Olympics… Clean sportsmen should not suffer, they achieve their results by hard work… we must protect them,” Mutko told TASS.
