FINA gives Olympics green light for Russians Lobintsev, Morozov

The International Swimming Federation has given the go-ahead to Russian swimmers Nikita Lobintsev and Vladimir Morozov to participate in the Rio Olympic Games, which kick off on Friday, Artyom Patsev, a Russian sports attorney said on Tuesday.

"Yes, Morozov and Lobintsev were granted permission from FINA to take part in the Olympics," Patsev said in an interview with TASS.

Swimming's global governing body announced last month it was likely to ban the two Russian swimmers from taking part in the upcoming Olympics since they had been mentioned in the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) Independent Commission report on the alleged widespread doping abuse and manipulation at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia's Sochi.

However, having studied all of the details stated in the Commission's report, FINA decided to clear Lobintsev and Morozov for Rio 2016. FINA's decision does not mean that the two swimmers will go to Brazil.

The final decision is yet to be made by the recently formed Panel of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which lists three members only and they are: Ugur Erdener, the head of the IOC Medical Commission; Claudia Bokel, an IOC Executive Board Member and the Chair of the IOC Athletes' Commission; and IOC Executive Board Member Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne will also have its say on the admission of the Russian swimmers to the global quadrennial summer sport event in Latin America.

That is because the court is currently reviewing a pending lawsuit from the Russian Swimming Federation against a potential ban on Lobintsev and Morozov from the 2016 Summer Games.

--IANS

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