Moscow (AFP)

The supervisory board of the Russian anti-doping agency (Rusada) on Wednesday recommended the dismissal of the disturbing boss of this key body in the fight against doping, Yuri Ganous, who is campaigning to denounce the authorities' lack of commitment against cheating athletic.

Mr. Ganous, director general of Rusada, in opposition to the Kremlin, had found it logical in December to ban Russia from world sport, given the extent of the frauds accused in Moscow.

On Wednesday, Rusada's supervisory board, which had already gone against some of its leader's positions, told Russian news agencies that Mr. Ganous's dismissal should be considered due to '' an audit which revealed infringements in the internal management of the organization.

"Of course (that it is revenge), it is a struggle. What we say does not please, as we fight for a clean sport," Ganous told AFP. , also qualifying the audit concerned "incomplete, unfounded and questionable".

The decision to dismiss him will be up to the agency's founders, the Russian Olympic and Paralympic committees, the very people who published the audit aimed at Rusada's management.

According to Mr. Ganous, the dismissal of an independent director general of the authorities "may lead to even heavier sanctions" against Russian sport, at a time when Moscow is challenging its exclusion pronounced in December before the Court of Arbitration for Sport. of the Olympics and any world championship.

Only one of the seven members of the supervisory board, Sergei Khytchikov, voted against this recommendation, according to the latter.

"I consider this decision unfounded and unfair (...) I consider it bad for Rusada and Russian anti-doping," he told TASS.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) said it was "extremely concerned" by this recommendation.

"It is an essential part of the World Anti-Doping Code that National Anti-Doping Organizations, such as Rusada, remain free from any interference by National Olympic and Paralympic Committees in their decisions and activities so that they can conduct their work in a manner effective, "she said in a statement.

"WADA will seek further clarification from the Russian authorities and consider any further action that may be necessary after discussing the matter with the Compliance Review Committee (CRC)," she warned.

In December 2019, when it declared Rusada non-compliant with the World Anti-Doping Code, WADA had conditioned the possible reinstatement of the Russian agency on respect for its independence, she stressed.

The head of the Russian Olympic Committee Stanislav Pozdniakov for his part indicated a forthcoming meeting to discuss the recommendation of the dismissal of Yuri Ganous, to which he said he was in favor in a statement: "Unfortunately, our fears have turned out to be real", he declared, assuring that the violations cited in the audit are "very serious".

In 2019, Mr. Ganous threw a paving stone in the pond, accusing in barely veiled terms the Russian authorities of having falsified data transmitted to WADA to camouflage the test results of Russian athletes.

Russia has been at the heart of a gigantic doping scandal since a WADA commission revealed in 2015 that Moscow had set up an institutional doping system since 2011, particularly active during the 2012 Olympics in Sochi.

The Kremlin has repeatedly denounced a cabal orchestrated by its geopolitical competitors.

© 2020 AFP