Russia suspects IAAF of not reading athletes' applications

The world athletics association IAAF approached formalistically the issue of examining Russian athletes' applications for admission to global competitions as it didn't even take the effort of reading them before imposing a ban, Russia's Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said on Monday.

As was reported on Sunday, the IAAF rejected the applications of all the Russian athletes for admission to international competitions, including the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro starting on August 5, except for long jumper Darya Klishina who was training in the United States, reports TASS.

"Our athletes are punished for some abstract, hardly legally punishable action, actually on suspicion," the Russian sports minister said.

"This is a very contentious and quite incomprehensive moment, to say nothing about the fact that the IAAF didn't even take the effort to read the applications. Moreover, apart from Darya Klishina, there are two or three other athletes who also worked abroad," Mutko said.

According to information available to TASS, world junior pole vault champion Alyona Lutkovskaya who is now training in Italy under the guidance of Vitaly Petrov, the former coach of famous Soviet pole vaulter Sergey Bubka, has also been barred by the IAAF from participation in international events.

The IAAF Council ruled on June 17 that only those Russian athletes would be admitted to international competitions, including the Rio Olympics, who would prove they were uninvolved in doping scandals.

Russia's Olympic Committee and 68 Russian athletes filed a lawsuit with the Court of Arbitration for Lausanne to challenge the IAAF's decision to bar them from participation in the Olympic Games.

The CAS will hear the case on July 19 and announce its verdict no later than July 21.

--IANS

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