Rio Olympics: Russia loses appeal against ban on track and field athletes  

A legal challenge by a group of Russian track and field athletes against their exclusion from next month’s Summer Olympics in Rio has been rejected.

The ruling comes amid claims of widespread state-sponsored doping in Russia.

The appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport or CAS, was launched by the Russian Olympic Committee and 68 Russian athletes who said they were being punished despite not having failed drugs tests.

CAS Secretary General Matthieu Reeb, however, stressed that the IOC would have the final word.

“Since the International Olympic Committee was not a party to these arbitrations, the CAS has no jurisdiction to determine whether the IOC is entitled to accept or refuse the nomination by the Russian Olympic Committee of Russian track and field athletes to compete at the Olympic Games in Rio,” he said.

Amid growing allegations of doping, the affair has triggered a crisis, with the International Olympic Committee pondering whether to impose a blanket ban on Russia in all sports.

Moscow has condemned today’s ruling -a grave blow to a nation that prides itself as a sporting superpower.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “I certainly regret such a decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport which refers to absolutely all of our athletes.”

“The principle of collective responsibility is hardly acceptable,” Peskov said.

SOURCE: euronews