IOC eyes legal bid to punish Russian doping

IOC President Thomas Bach speaks during a news conference in Pyeongchang, South Korea, on Friday. (Reuters)

PYEONGCHANG, South Korea: Olympics chief Thomas Bach on Friday urged the author of an explosive report on Russian doping to hand over more information for potential legal proceedings.
Bach has invited Richard McLaren and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) president Craig Reedie to discuss dealing with Russia, which is accused of operating a systematic doping program.
The olive branch comes after Bach and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) were initially skeptical of McLaren’s report and baulked at calls to ban Russia outright from last year’s Rio Olympics.
“What I wanted to discuss with him and Mr. Reedie is first of all whether they can give us further information, further advice, for our (investigative) commissions,” the IOC president said.
“And in such a way, trying to accelerate the procedure and then hopefully come to a solution of this situation,” he told media in South Korea’s Pyeongchang, venue for the 2018 Winter Games.
McLaren’s report detailed “state-sponsored” doping used to help Russian athletes at the 2012 London Olympics, 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, and the 2013 world athletics championships in Moscow.
As a result, Russian track and field athletes were barred from competing at the 2016 Rio Olympics after Russia’s suspension by the IAAF, the sport’s governing body.
Bach has sent written invitations to McLaren and Reedie, and hopes to gain information “able to stand scrutiny in a court of law,” IOC communications director Mark Adams said earlier.
Bach’s letter acknowledged that McLaren’s work “revealed a massive doping problem in Russia, based upon a systematic manipulation of anti-doping,” Adams said.
Reedie warned earlier this week that Russia still had “significant work” to do before WADA’s suspension of its anti-doping body, RUSADA, is lifted.