IAAF Task Force Chairman: No Russian Athletics Reinstatement Timeline

(ATR) International Association of Athletics Federations task force chairman Rune Andersen says there is no definitive time frame to lift the suspension on the All Russia Athletics Federation.

Andersen and IAAF president Sebastian Coe, however, conceded that Russian government officials and leaders of ARAF working with the task force are making progress. The task force will return to Moscow for further evaluation in January. As part of the suspension, no Russian athletics athlete is able to compete in international competition.

Andersen and Coe addressed the media at a news conference at the Fairmont Hotel in Monaco, following two days of IAAF Council meetings.

"I reported to the Council today that ARAF has made further progress towards satisfying reinstatement conditions since June 2016, including rolling out anti-doping education modules for coaches and athletes, securing cooperation by the Russian criminal authorities with their French counterparts and the Russian Parliament, Duma passing a new law criminalizing the supply of prohibited substances to athletes," Andersen said.

"One of the key remaining issues is how to demonstrate that IAAF and RUSADA after being reinstated will be able to conduct their anti-doping programs in Russia without outside interference," Andersen said.

Andersen outlined the three main guidelines that ARAF and Russian Anti-Doping Authorities (RUSADA) must meet for the athletes to be allowed to compete again on the international stage.

ARAF must be in full compliance with the World Anti-Doping Agency Code and IAAF anti-doping rules. Secondly, the IAAF and RUSADA must be able to conduct anti-doping programs in Russia effectively and without interference. Finally, reintegration of Russian athletes must not jeopardize the integrity of competitions.

Upon their return to the Russian capital in January, Andersen and the task force will once again meet with Russian deputy prime minister Vitaly Mutko, along with new sport minister and Russian Athletics president Pavel Kolobkov. After the visit, the task force is expected to issue its next report, including a road map outlining a potential time frame for reinstatement, to the IAAF Council at its next meeting on Feb. 17.

Coe and Andersen emphasized that the mission between the task force and Russian officials is a two-way street, as the IAAF is not only observing progress, but also advising on how to best satisfy the requirements in a reasonable time frame for reinstatement.

"We are giving advice on how we see that the verification criteria should or shouldn’t be met, but at the end of the day it’s the Russians themselves that have to do the work," Andersen said, responding to a question from Around the Rings.

Coe supported Andersen and professed positive changes are occurring in Russia as a direct result of the IAAF’s stringent Rio Olympic ban on ARAF upheld last June.

"Had it not been for the tough decision we took last year, many of the changes that we are pleased to hear are taking place and the progress would have almost certainly not occurred," Coe said.

"A law has just been passed on the treatment of coaches and the entourage that seems to be a guilty part of the process," Coe said. "They have made changes to the federation and changes to their coaches.

"Above and beyond that, there is a shift of view, and this would not have taken place without the tough decision that we made last year and I think that was a comfort to our Council," said the IAAF chief.

ARAF was indefinitely suspended by the IAAF in November 2016 as a result of the alleged state-sponsored doping transgressions. The governing body upheld the decision in June and the country’s athletes received a blanket ban for the Rio 2016 Games.

Upcoming major championships include the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, March 3-5, and the IAAF World Championships in London, August 4-13. Russian authorities expressed optimism that the ban could be lifted by the spring, however Andersen and Coe would not acknowledge the hopeful time frame.

As was the case with Russian long jumper Dariya Klishina in Rio, Russian athletes who can prove they are undergoing sufficient anti-doping testing outside of Russia, may be permitted to compete under a new IAAF rule added to its constitution in June.

Andersen noted that the task force is awaiting the results of the final McLaren report, following the WADA independent investigation into Russian doping on December 9. The report is expected to make revelations about not only illicit state-sponsored doping practices and cover-ups at Sochi 2014, but also pertaining to the IAAF world championships held in Moscow in 2013.

Andersen admitted that some Russian authorities are still unwilling to admit that there is a culture of doping in Russia.

"Some things are being acknowledged and other things are still not being acknowledged," Andersen said.

"When we write the final report, when we will recommend reinstatement to the IAAF Council, we will outline these facts because it is important to know."

Written by Brian Pinelli in Monaco

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