The Russian Athletics Association has been internationally shut down since 2015 since the Wada-commissioned McLaren report revealed systematic doping in the country.
Several prominent Russian athletics profiles have recently come out, demanding that the suspension be lifted and that Russian athletes should be able to compete in Doha under their own flag. They claim that Russian athletics are now clean and that shadows of the past have been eliminated in the form of strained coaches.
"We can see that the glass is half full and that they are moving in the right direction," IAAF chief Sebastian Coe told Reuters.
However, he does not believe the suspension will be lifted as there is still a lot of material to go through by a special intervention force who worked in Russia before the clear sign can be given. But the noble Englishman does not close the door completely.
- The question of reintroduction will be based on advice from the intervention force, says Coe.