Russia turned off until further notice – Sydsvenskan

With the votes 22-1 joined the International Association of Athletics Federations IAAF during Friday’s meeting of the Anti-Doping Agency WADA’s recommendation and closed by Russia of international athletics events indefinitely. The decision comes after the revelation of systematic doping.

– Today we have treated the Russian athletics federation failure and decided on a cut-off time being, the toughest penalty we can impose, said IAAF chairman Sebastian Coe.

Coe also said that the system failed athlete worldwide.

– This is a shameful awakening. We want to make clear that cheating will not be tolerated at any level. IAAF, WADA, the affiliates and the individual athlete must see themselves in the mirror. We need to look at the culture and processes to identify deficiencies. Nothing is more important than it is for our sport, said IAAF base.

As shutdown deprived Russia arrangements of a big time competition and the Junior World Championships Athletics next year.

The shutdown is current for the first time in off-road championship in France on 13 December. The biggest competitions next year is the World Championships in Portland in March, the European Championships in Amsterdam in July Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in August.

Toralf Nilsson, Acting Chairman of the Swedish Athletics Association, welcomes the shutdown.

– There is a good first step to restoring confidence in athletics. WADA report (which was presented Monday) gives a frightening picture of what it has looked like in the Russian track and field, he said.

To shutdown must be lifted, the Russian Federation fulfill a number of criteria. The Norwegian anti-doping expert Rune Andersen will lead a special review group in which three members of the IAAF’s governing council (Council) will be included.

Earlier on Friday joined the Russian pole vault star Yelena Isinbayeva in an open letter and appealed to the IAAF not to shut down the country’s athletes.

“Denying innocent participants the right to participate in international competitions is unfair,” wrote the double Olympic champion in the letter posted on the Russian Athletics Federation website.