Paris (AFP)

Final deadline before exclusion: the Russian Athletics Federation will have to pay its fines before August 15, otherwise an exclusion procedure from the International Federation will be initiated, which would greatly compromise the presence of Russian athletes, even under neutral banner, at the Tokyo Olympics in a year.

The Taskforce in charge of evaluating Russia's progress in the fight against doping in athletics has decided to give the Russian Federation one last chance: it has two weeks to pay 6.31 million dollars (5.37 million euros), for anti-doping rule violation (5 million USD in fine and 1.31 million USD in procedural costs).

Russia had until July 1 to settle the payments, but Russian Sports Minister Oleg Matytsin, in a letter sent to World Athletics on Thursday, pledged to pay the full amount due by August 15.

The recommendation made Thursday by the Taskforce to exclude Rusaf from the International Federation is suspended, but it will take "immediately and automatically" effect if Russia does not pay its fines before this deadline.

A World Athletics Congress, the only one authorized to exclude a member federation, will then meet "as soon as possible" to decide on this recommendation.

No "neutral athlete" (ANA) status, which allows Russian athletes to participate in international competitions under a neutral banner, will be granted for 2020 until the amounts due have been paid.

- The Danil Lysenko case -

Rune Andersen, chairman of the Taskforce, regretted Thursday at a remote press conference how little has changed in Russian athletics culture over the past five years.

"I think today's decision is constructive. We see a desire from World Athletics to collaborate with the Russian side. We have a very difficult path together to create the conditions for Rusaf's return but I think we have concluded agreements which allow us to hope for a constructive step, "Oleg Matytsine reacted Thursday, quoted by Russian agencies.

Russia is at the center of a vast institutionalized doping scandal between 2011 and 2015, particularly in athletics, and is under the close surveillance of the International Federation. Rusaf has been suspended since November 13, 2015.

In November 2019, World Athletics suspended the Rusaf reinstatement process, after high jumper Danil Lysenko, vice-world champion in 2017 in London and world indoor champion in 2018 with ANA status, provided with the support of the Russian Federation of false documents to justify a breach of its anti-doping whereabouts obligations ("no show") and avoid suspension.

Since then, the threat of outright exclusion has hovered over Russia, which would greatly compromise the presence of Russian athletes such as high jumper Maria Lasitskene, howler Sergey Shubenkov or pole vaulter Anzhelika Sidorova, including under the neutral banner, at the Tokyo Olympics in the summer of 2021.

- The TAS in November -

Beyond athletics, the whole of Russian sport has been singled out for nearly five years.

Faced with repeated rule violations, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) decided in December 2019 to suspend the Russian agency (Rusada) for four years, as well as to exclude Russia from major competitions, including the Olympic Games in summer and winter for the same duration.

La Rusada contested this suspension and it is now the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) which will have to rule, with a hearing before the CAS scheduled for early November.

If the supreme court of the sports world confirms the four-year suspension, the Russian flag would be absent from the Olympics-2020 in Tokyo, 2022 in Beijing and 2024 in Paris. Russian athletes could, however, under strict conditions, participate under a neutral banner.

© 2020 AFP