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Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called attempts to remove Russia from sporting events an example of unfair competition. Zakharova commented on the claims put forward by WADA against Russia, RBC reported.
The problem of doping, Maria Zakharova notes, is relevant for all states. It is unacceptable to politicize it. “It is impossible not to notice how the issue of doping, which, alas, is present in all countries and with which all countries are trying to fight, is focused exclusively on Russia,” the representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs emphasized. “We see a lobby that wants to use any facts, pretexts, antifacts to squeeze Russia out of the world of sports,” she added.
Earlier, the World Anti-Doping Agency's Compliance Review Committee
recommended that the executive committee deprived Russia of its right to participate in international competitions for four years. If the executive committee at the meeting on December 9 agrees with the recommendation, Russian athletes won’t compete under the national flag and with the national anthem. The right to hold international tournaments can also be withdrawn from Russia. Representatives of the committee argue that Russia manipulated the database of the Moscow laboratory and made adjustments to hide positive samples for the use of doping by athletes in the period from 2012 to 2015.
Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov called for "maintaining the coolness of judgement." “To give some assessments now, especially such far-reaching ones, before these recommendations have not taken the form of a decision, I consider it impossible and premature,” he said.
The president of the Russian Olympic Committee Stanislav Pozdnyakov is “perplexed” by the proposal to ban Russian sports officials from attending the Olympic Games. He called WADA’s claims “unfounded and biased.” He assured that the committee would do everything for the Russian team to perform in Tokyo under the Russian flag.
Russkiy Mir
