“My full conviction is that pure athletes must travel with a flag and anthem and fully represent their country. Over the past month, I have passed doping tests four times, like all other fencers. This suggests that we are the very clean and spotless athletes, ”RT Yakimenko said.
According to him, the Russian Olympic Committee is not involved in this scandal.
“There is no way to contradict the Olympic Charter. If you understand that an athlete does not use doping, passes tests, and his international federation has nothing against, then he must represent his country. Otherwise, it’s absurd, ”he added.
Earlier, he admitted that the WADA sanctions against Russia did not come as a surprise to him, since he had expected something similar since the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.