Seven Russian Swimmers Hit with Olympics Ban
Seven Russian swimmers have been banned from competing in Rio after governing body FINA outlined its stance on Monday.
OMNISPORT
FINA has revealed that seven Russian swimmers have been banned from competing in the Rio Olympic Games due to doping violations.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Sunday opted against imposing a blanket ban on Russian athletes for the Games in Brazil next month, stating that it would be down to individual sports federations to decide whether to allow them to compete.
That came following the publication of the a damning report by Professor Richard McLaren, which found that doped athletes representing Russia had been "directed [and] controlled" at state level.
Swimming governing body FINA on Monday said it supports the IOC's position, but stated that the McLaren report "clearly establishes that the anti-doping rules were not properly applied and notably that a number of samples collected from swimmers were not correctly reported in accordance with FINA rules."
FINA has banned 2008 Olympic silver medallist and 2012 bronze medallist Nikita Lobintsev, 2012 bronze medallist Vladimir Morozov and Daria Ustinova from the Olympics next month after they appeared in the McLaren report.
World 100 metre breaststroke champion Yulia Efimova, Mikhail Dovgalyuk, Natalia Lovtsova and marathon swimmer Anastasia Krapivina have been withdrawn by the Russian Olympic Committee as the quartet have previously been sanctioned.
FINA stated that there is no indication in the McLaren report that athletes of the Russian Synchronised Swimming Federation, Russian Diving Federation and Russian Water Polo would be implicated.
The governing body has also decided to retest all of the samples which were taken from Russian athletes at the World Championships in Kazan last year.