What is wada?

The head of the independent commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), Richard McLaren, is in trouble. Now he could be jailed for perjury.

The head of the independent commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), Richard McLaren, who spoke in his report about the doping system in Russia, refused to provide specific evidence. The President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, announced this at a press conference.

It turns out that McLaren simply spun all sorts of nonsense, and the Olympic Committee, instead of acting in accordance with the Law, followed the lead of the deceitful head of WADA.

On the eve of the rotten Olympics, McLaren made a report in which, allegedly, based on the testimony of the discredited ex-head of the Moscow anti-doping laboratory Grigory Rodchenkov, he spoke about the supposedly existing system of falsification of doping samples in Russia.

This report almost became the reason for the removal of our team from the rotten 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

From time to time, the so-called “McLaren list” is mentioned - supposedly additional information to the report. This information has not yet been presented to the general public.

And each time new names of Russian athletes appear on this “list” who are allegedly guilty of doping. Many of them ultimately did not make it to the rotten Olympic Games.

Also, because of this list, the Olympic Committee is going to suspend the Russian Paralympic team.

And all this despite the fact that no concrete evidence of any athlete’s guilt was presented.

It is obvious that the international conspiracy against the Russian team is carried out on an illegal basis. McLaren's report served as a reason for the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) to suspend our athletes from the Games.

Bach - it would seem, an experienced official - has only now finally announced that the IOC asked McLaren for specific evidence of the Russians’ guilt before transmitting the information to the IAAF. But, according to IOC President, Richard McLaren refused to provide the information because, in his opinion, it was not “urgent and vital.”

And in the absence of evidence, the careless or, better said, criminal president of the IOC followed WADA’s lead. It seems to us that he is not an ass at all, so that he would voluntarily tend to a non-existent carrot. Rather, the IOC president was paid.

Who did it? The issue is resolved simply. We remember what Sherlock Holmes said about this: look for who benefits.

The fact that the removal of the Russian team was beneficial to Bach himself is certain, because there should be an appropriate payment for such a crime. Well, the main beneficiary is Barack Obama. Before his departure, he strives to show the whole world that, under his rule, the US team collected so many medals.

In our opinion, both McLaren and Bach should be prosecuted for falsification of charges. There is a similar article in the Criminal Code of every country.

Sofia Naiman

In an interview with R-Sport correspondent Semyon Galkevich, he spoke about his attitude to the situation with (RUSADA), stated that he never called for the disqualification of the Russian team, and admitted that he does not understand why Russia does not recognize the report.

It has been difficult for all of us since December 2014, when the first commission was created to investigate the situation with doping in Russian sports. We have been living with this for three years now. And as time goes on, it only becomes more difficult, because I see the progress that RUSADA has made, as I said, they have already passed 90% of the way, there are only two points left on the roadmap.

Two points, which, I emphasize, were agreed upon by all parties. Agree, as the head of WADA, I simply do not have the right to say now: “Okay, sorry, we are removing these requirements and reinstating you.” It would look extremely strange.

- Are you now starting a joint investigation with the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation?

We answered the Investigative Committee that we were ready to cooperate and accepted the offer. And they made a request that we be given access to the Moscow laboratory. This is the most important thing now.

- And what did they answer you?

Nothing yet, but I hope for a positive response. This issue must be resolved as soon as possible. If you have the opportunity to contact the Investigative Committee, remind them of our request.

Do you agree that the clause on the recognition of the McLaren report is not a question for RUSADA? How can they force government officials to say anything?

It is important for us to understand that all the institutions involved recognize the mistakes they have made and have learned lessons from the past. We want to restore RUSADA, but first we need to get this recognition from the Russian leadership.

- Do you understand why this point is not being fulfilled? Why is the report not accepted?

It simply boggles the mind why the report is not recognized. Perhaps the fact is that we live in different cultures, in different parts of the world.
It seems that all the problems are in the wording. In the end, there may be some new words, but for now our Compliance Committee, led by Jonathan Taylor, is using the same language that Richard McLaren used in his report, and has no intention of changing it. If we are talking about all this in the context of the McLaren report, then it is logical to accept its wording.

Speaking of Taylor. At a meeting of the WADA founding council, it seemed to the Russian Minister of Sports Pavel Kolobkov that the main person in the room was not Craig Reedy, but Jonathan Taylor - he behaved so aggressively.

Taylor is just doing his job. And he does it well. He is a great professional whom we trust fully.

- Weren’t you surprised that no one from RUSADA came to the meeting of the board of founders?

There is no problem with this, we spoke with (the general director of RUSADA) two weeks ago. The Minister of Sports and the head of the ROC expressed a desire to speak in Seoul, and we gladly gave them the floor.

"WADA never called for the disqualification of the Russian team"

Do you think the WADA decision will affect the December decision of the IOC on the admission of the Russian team to the Olympics in Pyeongchang?

It shouldn't. I believe that the IOC has long been prepared for such a development of events, for the fact that RUSADA will not yet be restored by December. First of all, the IOC is waiting for the completion of its commissions' investigations. Well, don’t forget that WADA is 50% made up of IOC representatives, so they know very well what’s going on.

We will definitely talk with (the head of the IOC) as soon as possible, next week. And I have something to tell him.

No, this will not be beneficial, as practice shows. Any words I say will inevitably lead to me being written down in one of two directions. Believe me, we will provide the IOC with all the information we have.

Then explain what has changed compared to last year, when WADA called for the entire Russian team to be suspended from participation in the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

This is a very big misconception. WADA never called for the disqualification of the Russian team. And in principle it could not do this - it is not in our competence. Last July, we came to the IOC with a proposal in which we called for considering the option of reducing the number of Russian athletes who are allowed to participate in the Games. Then the IOC shifted the decision to the federations because it did not have all the necessary information. Now they already have it, so the situation is completely different. At the beginning of December we will find out what the IOC will decide.

- In conclusion. Tell me, can you imagine sport outside of politics?

This is incredible, this is an impossible dream. Politics touches literally every aspect of our lives, and sport is the most important of all the unimportant things in our lives.

WADA headquarters in Montreal. Photo: Reuters

World Anti-Doping Agency(English WADA, World Anti-Doping Agency) is an international independent organization coordinating the fight against doping in sports.

The main document of the agency is the World Anti-Doping Code. It regulates anti-doping measures applied in all sports. In accordance with the provisions of the Code, WADA carries out the following activities:

Generates a list of prohibited substances;

Carries out accreditation and control over laboratories involved in the collection of doping samples of athletes;

Informs athletes, coaches, doctors about the activities of anti-doping programs, the consequences of taking prohibited substances;

Notifies sports federations of doping abuse by athletes. Based on the materials provided, individual athletes or teams may be removed from the competition.

When and why was WADA created?

The organization was created in 1999 at the initiative of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in cooperation with national governments and other public and private bodies monitoring the issue of doping.

One of the first high-profile scandals involving doping by athletes occurred at the Tour de France cycling race in July 1998. This case became the reason for the organization of the “First World Conference on Anti-Doping in Sports”, held in Switzerland in the city of Lausanne from February 2 to 4, 1999. This event marked the beginning of the history of WADA's activities.

Who heads WADA and where is the organization's headquarters located?

WADA's headquarters are located in Montreal, Canada. The organization is headed by the Vice-President of the IOC Craig Reedy.

Who funds WADA?

To date, WADA receives half of its funding from the IOC, with the remaining contributions coming from world governments. In 2015, Russia paid the agency more than $1 million, of which 745 thousand was the official membership fee, the rest was voluntary funding. According to WADA's annual report, in 2015 the agency's budget was $27.5 million.

After Russian intelligence services banned one of the independent doping experts from visiting closed cities, the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency, Craig Reedy, wrote a letter to Vitaly Mutko demanding not to interfere with the work of foreign specialists, including in cities with a special regime. However, as the Times notes, a year ago the WADA president was criticized, on the contrary, for being too soft on Russia.

The President of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), Craig Reedy, sent a letter to Vitaly Mutko demanding that independent experts be able to test athletes, even if they are in closed cities.

As the Times explains, such a message was caused by the fact that a German anti-doping representative was prevented by Russian FSB officers when she tried to take tests from a Paralympic athlete in Trekhgorny, Russia, which is a closed city. She was threatened with deportation if she came within 80 kilometers of any closed city, and her Russian assistant was threatened with arrest.

Moreover, in a conversation with a journalist from the publication, the head of WADA said that changes in the Russian anti-doping field are proceeding at an extremely slow pace, and, in his opinion, two years may pass before Russia reaches the desired result. " What Russia has done today could have been done months ago" said Reedy.

Reedy also named the officer who will interrogate the former head of the Russian anti-doping laboratory, Grigory Rodchenkov, and whistleblower Vitaly Stepanov. This will be Professor of Law Richard McLaren. He previously served on a commission of experts who uncovered cases of doping among Russian athletes.

However, the publication notes, Reedy’s harsh words may be due to the fact that about a year ago he himself was criticized for writing to Mutko about how he values ​​the relationship between his agency and Russia. Today he says that he very much regrets that letter, writes the Times.

• 03:00

  Russian track and field athlete Sergei Shubenkov commented on the response of the All-Russian Athletics Federation (ARAF) to an open letter written by him, as well as athletes Maria Lasitskene and Anzhelika Sidorova.

• 03:00

  Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev commented on the end of negotiations between Ukraine and Russia on gas transit.

• 03:00

  Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan commented on the performance of Russian forward Evgeni Malkin in the National Hockey League (NHL) regular season match with the Ottawa Senators (5:2).

• 03:00

  Russian Foreign Ministry official Maria Zakharova believes that Swedish 16-year-old schoolgirl Greta Thunberg is first and foremost a child.

• 03:00

  Bronze medalist of the 2002 Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Andrei Nikolishin, called the power play the main problem of the Russian youth hockey team at the World Championships in the Czech Republic.

• 03:00

  Former Washington Capitals forward Andrei Nikolishin expressed the opinion that the goalkeeper of the Russian national hockey team, Amir Miftakhov, was to blame for only one missed goal in the match with the US national team at the World Youth Championship in the Czech Republic.

• 03:00

  A court in the Stavropol region sentenced a college student who attacked three minors with acid in the summer of 2017 to five years in prison.

• 03:00

  Russian tennis player Vera Zvonareva will not take part in the Australian Open Grand Slam tournament due to injury.

• 03:00

  Journalist Vaughn Smith told RT about a phone call from his friend, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, who is currently in prison in the UK.

• 03:00

  Member of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs Sergei Tsekov commented in a conversation with RT on the signing of a package agreement by Moscow and Kiev, which will allow the continuation of gas transit through Ukrainian territory after January 1, 2020.

• 03:00

  Famous figure skating coach Rafael Harutyunyan shared his opinion why there are many athletes in Eteri Tutberidze’s group who are proficient in quadruple jumps.

• 03:00

  A plane flying to Moscow made an emergency landing at Koltsovo airport in Yekaterinburg, Interfax reports.

• 03:00

  Olympic bronze medalist Andrei Nikolishin said that the defeat of the Russian national hockey team by the US national team at the World Youth Championships in the Czech Republic was not due to fatigue.

• 03:00

  Olympic bronze medalist Andrei Nikolishin commented on the defeat of the Russian national hockey team by the US national team at the World Youth Championship in the Czech Republic.

• 03:00

  Russian national team forward Nikita Rtishchev shared his expectations from the World Youth Championship match with the German team.

• 03:00

  Silver medalist of the 2002 Olympics, choreographer Ilya Averbukh congratulated two-time world figure skating champion Evgenia Medvedeva on her debut in his ice show “The Wizard of Oz.”

• 03:00

  Prime Minister of Ukraine Alexey Goncharuk said that by 2023 the Ukrainian energy system should finally separate from the Russian-Belarusian one and become part of the European one.

• 03:00

  Russian New York Rangers forward Artemy Panarin received an invitation to take part in the National Hockey League (NHL) All-Star Game.

• 03:00

  As part of the regular season of the National Hockey League (NHL), the Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Ottawa Senators.

• 03:00

  The chief specialist of the Phobos weather center, Evgeny Tishkovets, said that snow will remain in Moscow on New Year's Eve.

• 03:00

  The KhMAO Health Department said that four people were hospitalized at the Surgut Trauma Hospital after a bus collided with a cargo trawl.

• 03:00

  The price of Brent oil is rising. This is evidenced by trading data.

• 03:00

  An earthquake of magnitude 5.5 was registered in the east of the Kamchatka Peninsula, Interfax was told at the Kamchatka branch of the Unified Geophysical Service of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

• 03:00

  State Duma deputy Vitaly Milonov proposed to the head of the traffic police, Mikhail Chernikov, to punish drivers who provoke the formation of traffic jams.

• 03:00

  More than 40 thousand law enforcement officers will ensure law and order during the New Year holidays in Moscow.

• 03:00

  The former head of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi automobile alliance, Carlos Ghosn, confirmed that he left Japan and said that he was fleeing political persecution.

• 03:00

  Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Health Protection Dmitry Morozov said that a presumption of consent to posthumous organ donation may appear in Russia; a draft corresponding law has already been prepared.

• 03:00

  In Moscow on Tuesday, December 31, temperatures are expected to reach +2 °C, Gazeta.Ru reports, citing data from the Hydrometeorological Center.

• 03:00

  The former head of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi automobile alliance, Carlos Ghosn, could have left Japan under a different name.

• 03:00

  Specialists from the Taxcom fiscal data platform calculated the mimosa salad index. The results of the study are available to RT.

• 03:00

  The American publication Forbes writes that US sanctions against the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline were a year late.

• 03:00

  On January 1, the last stage of limiting the maximum debt comes into force in Russia. According to the new rules, the maximum amount of interest on loans for a period of up to one year will not exceed the debt itself by more than 1.5 times.

• 03:00

  The Chairman of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, noted in his New Year’s greeting that in 2019, investigators brought more than 80 thousand criminal cases to trial.

• 03:00

  US President Donald Trump said that most of the parishioners in the Texas church where the shooting occurred were saved due to the fact that the state allows carrying weapons.

• 03:00

  The head of Naftogaz, Andrei Kobolev, expressed gratitude to foreign partners for their support during the negotiations on the gas deal.

• 03:00

  German Chancellor Angela Merkel touched on the issue of climate change in her New Year's address.

Russia will consider the possibility of applying personal sanctions against the leadership of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). This issue will be raised on December 12 at a special joint meeting in the Federation Council. In addition to senators, Russian athletes, parliamentarians and diplomats will take part in it. Izvestia was told about this by two high-ranking sources in parliamentary circles of the Russian Federation, who will take part in the upcoming event. The head of the Federation Council commission on protecting state sovereignty and preventing interference in internal affairs, Andrei Klimov, confirmed that retaliatory measures will be considered, emphasizing that the majority of WADA member states are NATO countries that systematically discredit the image of Moscow in the international arena.

Andrei Klimov told Izvestia that the decision to convene the meeting on December 12 was not spontaneous. It was accepted long before the IOC announced the disqualification of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) due to alleged violations of anti-doping rules by athletes (December 5). After all, developing retaliatory measures against the World Anti-Doping Agency, which opposes our Olympians, has been on the agenda for a long time.

Since professional people are working against the Russian Federation, we need to carefully consider our response steps. We know that US representatives had conversations with foreign diplomats and public figures, literally inciting them to use sports issues against us. The people who pushed for this decision have nothing to do with sports. We must bring them into the light of day and clearly show that this decision is not about sports. There will be a meeting on December 12 at which further actions will be determined. They need to be brought to light and dealt with,” the senator said.

He drew attention to the “geopolitical” composition of the WADA leadership, whose discriminatory actions led to the decision to allow Russian Olympians to the Games in South Korea under a neutral flag.

More than half of WADA's leadership team are representatives of countries that are members of the NATO military-political alliance, the goal of which is to fight Russia. And this despite the fact that NATO represents only one tenth of the world's population. Agree, a very strange proportion. I am not saying that each of them works as a secret agent of the North Atlantic Alliance, but in practice this is exactly what happens. Yesterday our diplomats and “foreign agents” media suffered from their actions, and today – the Olympians. “All these are different platforms that are used by NATO countries in order to throw Russia back,” the senator said.

The President of WADA is the representative of Great Britain Sir Craig Reedy. The post of vice-president is also occupied by a citizen of the NATO state - Norway - Linda Helleland. Among the 38 members of the highest body of the World Anti-Doping Agency, which makes all major decisions, there is not a single representative of Russia. Most of the countries are members of the alliance.

Commenting on the situation, press secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov noted that it is necessary to exclude emotions and seriously analyze the decisions made regarding our team. However, as noted by two Izvestia sources in Russian parliamentary circles, the question of the need for sanctions against the leadership of the World Anti-Doping Agency was raised long before the latest statements by WADA and the decision of the IOC. At the meeting on December 12, all proposals will be studied in more detail.

They will consider the issue of personal sanctions against the leaders of WADA and the cessation of funding for the organization, noted another high-ranking source of Izvestia, who will take part in the meeting on December 12.

According to Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs Vladimir Dzhabarov, the WADA leadership showed its true colors.

This organization and some of its leaders play by double or even triple rules, encouraging some and discrediting others. There were many scandals with athletes from the USA and Great Britain, but WADA nullified everything, the senator noted in an interview with Izvestia.

According to the IOC decision of December 5, Moscow is obliged to pay $15 million for the development of an independent doping control system, as well as compensate WADA’s expenses for the investigation. At the same time, Russian athletes will be able to compete at the Games in Pyeongchang, which will be held on February 9–25, under a neutral flag. Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko is banned from participating in the Olympic Games for life. The IOC's verdict was largely based on WADA reports.