Olympic Committee rejects inclusion of Russian athletes

By Satuk Bugra Kutlugun

ANKARA (AA) - The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Monday rejected a request from the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) for including athletes in the Winter Olympics in South Korea's Pyeongchang.

After the Feb. 1 decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to overturn the IOC suspensions for 28 Russian athletes for doping at the 2014 Winter Olympics, the ROC provided a list of 15 people to the IOC, 13 of whom were still active as athletes.

"While the Invitation Review Panel noted the CAS’s decision of 1 February 2018, it also noted that the full reasoning for these decisions had not been made public," the written statement said.

"The panel highlighted that its role, according to the IOC Executive Board decision of 5 December 2017, was not to establish ADRVs [Anti-Doping Rule Violations], but to confirm that athletes can be considered clean for a potential OAR [Olympic Athlete from Russia] invitation to the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018.

"Therefore, the panel unanimously recommended that the IOC not extend an invitation to the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 to the 15 individuals requested by the suspended ROC," it said.

The IOC also said two Russian coaches -- due to the evidence available from the Oswald Commission reports -- "should not be considered for an invitation to attend the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018".

PyeongChang 2018 will host the 23rd Olympic Winter Games between Feb. 9-25.