UK Athletics Chair Ed Warner "slammed suggestions" by IOC President Thomas Bach that he expected Russia to compete at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics next year, according to Ron Lewis of the LONDON TIMES. Russia "was suspended from world athletics on Friday night by the IAAF in response to WADA’s report that revealed systematic doping in the country." The IAAF "set down a series of tough measures and changes that would have to be implemented before Russia could be considered for a return." But Bach’s comments on Saturday that he was confident clean Russia athletes would be in Rio were called "extraordinary" by Warner, who suggested that the IOC "should lead investigations into Russians in other sports, rather than smooth the country’s return in athletics." Warner: "You can’t say how long it will take Russia to become compliant with the WADA code, it may take months, it may take years. It seems rather premature of him to suggest that they are definitely going to be in Rio. ... It seems to me you need a whole new generation of administrators in Russia and a whole new generation of coaches, and maybe they have to bring in some of those from the outside." Bach backtracked slightly on Sunday, saying that "it was down to Russia to prove it had cleaned up its act." Bach: "The important goal is not bringing them back. The goal has to be Russia being compliant again with all the international anti-doping regulations" (LONDON TIMES, 11/17).
2024 GAMES: REUTERS reported Bach said that the deadly attacks on Paris "will not hurt the French capital’s chances of hosting the 2024 Summer Games." The host city of the 2024 Games will be designated in '17 but Bach believes that "the atrocity that struck Paris, announced as one of five candidate cities in September, will have no bearing on the outcome of the IOC vote." Bach: "We are talking about the Olympic Games that will be held in nine years and terrorism is global, it is not just about a country or a city" (REUTERS, 11/16).
