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A pedestrian passes a poster of the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. KAZUHIRO NOGI / AFP

Russia was banned from the Olympics for four years for falsifying data submitted to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). This decision was made public by WADA on Monday 9 December in the morning.

This is a new earthquake for Russian sport. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) decided on Monday (December 9th) to exclude Russia from the Olympics for four years. This means that the flag and the Russian anthem would not be present in Tokyo in 2020 during the summer Olympics and those of winter in 2022 in Beijing. Russia, as a nation, is thus banned from international sport for four years. It is a question of sanctioning the falsification of the data of controls delivered to the agency.

Computer experts commissioned by WADA found that " hundreds " of suspicious results had been erased from this data, some of them between December 2018 and January 2019, just before delivery.

Other measures approved by WADA include a four-year ban on the organization of global competitions (Olympic Games and World Championships).

Approved unanimously

" The full list of [Compliance Review Committee Sanctions] recommendations has been unanimously approved " by the twelve members of the Executive Committee, WADA spokesperson told the media. The Compliance Review Committee recommended, among other things, the exclusion of the Russian flag from the Olympics and any world championship for four years, with the possible presence of Russian athletes under the " neutral " flag.

" This means that Russian athletes, if they want to participate in the Olympic or Paralympic Games or any other major event listed in the recommendations, will have to demonstrate that they are not involved in the doping programs described by the " McLaren " reports or that their samples have not been falsified, "said the spokesman.

" It's time for WADA and the IOC to take the toughest possible sanctions against the biggest scandal in the history of sport, " WADA Vice President Linda Helleland of Norway said Sunday evening. , partisan of firmness.

Other voices, including those of US anti-doping boss Travis Tygart, or members of the WADA Athlete's Committee, had risen to demand tougher sanctions, such as a total ban on the participation of Russian athletes. at the Olympics.

The decision of WADA may be challenged by Russia within 21 days before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the National Anti-Doping Agency Rusada, or the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) or any international federation that would be concerned. The appeal would in principle be suspensive and the sanctions would only be applicable once confirmed by the CAS.

Prior to Rio 2016, WADA had already called for an exclusion

Shortly before the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, WADA had called for an exclusion of the Russians, but its decision was not binding and the IOC had not followed it.

For the Rio Olympics in Brazil, the IOC decided to let the international federations decide on the participation of Russian athletes on a case-by-case basis. The World Anti-Doping Agency did not hide its disappointment. The International Athletics Federation (IAAF) had closed the door to Russian athletes. The publication of the McLaren report revealed widespread state doping in all sports between 2011 and 2015.