Russia "ruled out a Cold War-style boycott of the Olympics if its athletes are banned from next year’s Games over the biggest doping scandal ever seen," according to Ben Rumsby of the London TELEGRAPH.
Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko "calmed fears within the international sports community that his country would re-open the bitter divisions of the 1980s if its track-and-field stars were excluded from Rio 2016." Mutko insisted his country was "a dependable partner of the international Olympic movement." Mutko: "We don’t plan to boycott anything anywhere." He also revealed he planned to speak with Int'l Association of Athletics Federations President Sebastian Coe ahead of a crisis meeting of the IAAF on Friday "which is set to see the All-Russia Athletics Federation provisionally suspended." Thursday "also saw Russian bank VTB end its sponsorship of international athletics but insist the decision was not connected with the doping scandal" (TELEGRAPH, 11/12). REUTERS' Lidia Kelly wrote Russia's Olympic Committee said on Thursday that "it had recommended that former Russian Athletics Federation head Valentin Balakhnichev resign as a member of the committee executive" (REUTERS, 11/12).
BACH IN SHOCK: In Sydney, Jacquelin Magnay wrote IOC President Thomas Bach "admitted to incomprehensible shock following allegations" former IAAF President Lamine Diack took $1M bribes to cover up doping offenses. Bach said, "This was shocking and very saddening news. I could never have imagined that in an International Federation, the leadership would solicit in bribes from athletes in order to manipulate sports competitions. This is unbelievable and makes everyone who loves sport extremely sad" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 11/12).
