The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has dealt a HUGE blow to the Russian Federation and its chances of participating in the upcoming 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
The hockey rich country was issued a suspension earlier this year when it was uncovered that the Russian government ran a state-funded doping program for its athletes in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. At the time, WADA issued an ultimatum to the Russian Federation if it were to be reinstated that included two things:
- That Russia publicly accept the results of the investigation.
- That Russia allows access to urine samples collected during the time of the cheating.
To date neither of these conditions have been met and, as a result, the Russian Federation has been banned from participating in the upcoming Games.
Now, there’s still time left for Russia to become compliant and get themselves re-instated. But, in addition to the above conditions, all Russian athletes will have to be thoroughly tested and re-tested before they’re allowed to compete.
No NHLers… no Russian KHLers… what’s even the point of watching the Olympics this year?
