WADA Critical of Russia Progress

(ATR) WADA president Craig Reedie has again called for Russia’s anti-doping authorities to accelerate work to achieve compliance.

Speaking at the WADA Symposium in Lausanne on Wednesday, Reedie said RUSADA had made only slow progress since its suspension in November 2015.

"We want to welcome an independent and efficient RUSADA back in from the cold... it’s a pity it is taking so long for Russian authorities to make it happen," he told the more than 900 delegates attending the conference.

The WADA chief noted that Russia still failed to accept the findings of the 2016 McLaren Report that detailed a state-sponsored doping scheme involving more than 1,000 Russian athletes. The scandal has rocked the Olympic Movement and triggered debate about the IOC and WADA’s fight against doping over the past two years.

With the country’s sports ministry and Olympic committee failing to acknowledge McLaren’s conclusions, RUSADA reinstatement still appears a long way off.

Reedie told the symposium it was "time for this situation to change".

"The big losers are Russia’s own athletes," he was quoted by Reuters, claiming the country’s refusal to accept the report on systemic doping clouded their participation at major sporting events.

"If WADA cannot declare that Russia has a compliant national anti-doping agency, then the rest of the world will not be convinced that any meaningful change has taken place… the suspicion and doubt will continue."

Reedie also hit out at the Russian Investigative Committee probing the doping scandal. WADA wants to join the committee to inspect the Moscow drug testing laboratory where the samples of Russian athletes are kept. WADA access is one of the criteria towards Russia’s reinstatement.

But Reedie said there had so far been no response to four WADA letters to Russia asking for a joint inspection: "It seems our offer has fallen on deaf ears."

RUSADA head Yury Ganus also addressed the symposium, telling delegates that Russia had delivered lots of changes to its anti-doping system. But he admitted Russia wouldn’t accept the findings of the McLaren Report. Asked why, he said: "It’s not a question that depends on us… it’s about negotiation."

The WADA president had earlier opened his speech by insisting the international anti-doping system "isn’t broken".

Olivier Niggli, director general of WADA, was among other speakers on day one of the symposium.

He spoke about WADA’s strategic priorities, focusing on improvements to ADO compliance, intelligence and investigations, and the whistleblower program.

There was also an update on the new international standard on code compliance by WADA signatories.

WADA Athletes’ Committee chair Beckie Scott said: "Athletes are expected to uphold a very high standard of compliance in relation to anti-doping. It is very important that all signatories are held to the same standards within the code."

Reported by Mark Bisson

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