“The desire to influence the outcome of the competition”: SBR demanded that the IBU clarify the situation with searches at Loginov at the World Cup

The Russian Biathlon Union (RBU) sent an open letter to the International Biathlon Union (IBU) with a request to clarify the situation with searches by Alexander Loginov and his mentor Alexander Kasperovich.

Representatives of the RBU called the incident a violation of the principles adopted in the biathlon community. It is noted that Kasperovich’s lack of accreditation is an administrative rather than a criminal violation. In addition, the IBU management did not take any action to protect the athletes, the statement said.

“Neither the organizing committee of the competition, nor the members of the IBU executive committee, nor the representatives of the athletes committee took any steps to soften the atmosphere around the Russian team. The SBR did not explain which articles and provisions of the IBU Constitution were violated by Alexander Loginov in order to be subjected to such obstruction by representatives of other teams. In the action (or rather, inaction) of the IBU it is not difficult to discern a desire to influence the outcome of the competition, to place athletes in obviously unequal conditions, ”the letter says on the official website of the union.

The SBR expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that the biathlon authorities did not take any steps to soften the atmosphere around the Russian team.

“As a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the IBU is required to comply with the basic provisions of the Olympic Charter. The events of recent days are clearly contrary to the goals of "creating a peaceful society that cares about the preservation of human dignity" and speak more about discrimination than about "mutual understanding in the spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play," the SBR summed up.

Earlier, the president of the union, Vladimir Drachev, said that he was currently considering the possibility of filing an application with the court for IBU actions. Moreover, the lawsuit can apply both to the entire organization and to the acting anti-doping manager Sarah Fussek, on whose initiative Kasperovich’s accreditation case was transferred to the prosecutor’s office.

The position of Loginov himself and his mentor remains unclear. Kasperovich said that they also intend to prove their case in higher authorities, as well as demand both moral and material compensation. After the police visit, the athlete's health condition worsened and he was forced to withdraw from the final race of the World Cup.

At the same time, the head coach of the Tyumen national team Maxim Kugaevsky said that Loginov was surprised at the information about the lawsuit.

“Now Alexander is at home with his family and is trying to distract himself from biathlon for a while. So now there is no talk of a lawsuit. At the same time, he is ready to fight for his honest name, but has not yet decided which way to choose for this, ”TASS quotes Kugaevsky.

Meanwhile, new details of the search appeared in the location of the Russian team. If earlier it was believed that only Fussek acted as its initiator, now the chairman of the BIU, Louise Reilly, said that several IBU employees who monitored anti-doping rules in Anterselva acted as informants. According to her, doubting the cleanliness of Loginov, they acted in accordance with the instructions of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

“The WADA International Standard for Testing and Investigations requires anti-doping organizations to develop policies and procedures for the exchange of information and intelligence with law enforcement and other interested bodies,” Reilly said.

Meanwhile, many colleagues continue to support Loginov. Biathlete Yevgenia Pavlova expressed bewilderment over the statements of rivals, since, according to her, the Russian team is the cleanest team in international competitions.

“Some foreign biathletes violate the ethics of IBU competitions by speaking and attacking. Sasha Loginov is being attacked for the second time before the World Cup. But we are a team, we support him and a mountain for him. And they are not offended by fools, ”Pavlova quoted Sport.tut.by as saying.

In fairness, it is worth noting that foreigners also side with the world champion in the sprint. Former German biathlete Michael Rösch, now acting as an expert on television, admitted that he only respects Loginov.

“He served two years for EPO, returned, and the stands greeted him with a disapproving hum. But he still became the world champion. Taking off my hat. He’s very strong, what can I say, ”Rösch said on Match TV.