Background Information to the decision of the IOC Executive Board concerning the participation of Russian athletes in the Olympic Games Rio 2016

Why is there no “neutral athlete” at the Olympic Games?
The Olympic Charter does not foresee such “neutral athletes”. The Olympic Summit reaffirmed the Rules of the Olympic Charter on 21 June 2016 that entry into the Olympic Games is a two-step procedure. “It is up to the IFs only to decide on the technical eligibility of athletes, in particular in relation to doping issues. Only National Olympic Committees (NOCs) can enter athletes to the Olympic Games, selecting from the IF pool of eligible athletes.” This applies even to otherwise suspended NOCs.

What is the role of the ROC in the Russian sports structure?

The responsibility for high-level sports organisation in Russia belongs to the Ministry of Sport. This includes the management of and responsibility for the Centres of Sports Preparation of National Teams of Russia (CSP) and the coordination with the National Federations in all sports. The ROC is responsible for organising and entering the Russian teams that participate in the Olympic Games and some other multi-sports competitions, such as the European Games. The ROC is not involved in the specific preparation programmes for the athletes.

Which roles did Yuri Nagornykh and Irina Rodionova, who are mentioned in the IP Report, have in the ROC?
According to information provided by the ROC, Yuri Nagornykh was the Deputy Minister of Sport, and, in accordance with the statutes of the ROC, delegated by the government to the Executive Board (EB) of the ROC from May 2014 on. He had no direct responsibility in the ROC. According to the ROC statutes, one seat of the EB is reserved for a government representative, as is the case in many other NOCs. Irina Rodionova was the Director of the Scientific Department of the ROC. She left the ROC in early 2013.

Why did the IOC not suspend the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC)?
The situation is very different from the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). The IAAF had suspended the All-Russia Athletic Federation (ARAF) after the corruption case involving ARAF and IAAF officials was described by the Independent Commission led by Richard W. Pound, QC, in the autumn of 2015. This corruption case is the subject of a criminal investigation by the French legal authorities, to which the IOC is a civil party. Such an extreme situation does not exist in any other International Federation (IF), or at the level of the IOC. Furthermore, the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) Independent Person Report (IP Report) by Prof. Richard McLaren contained no findings against the ROC as an institution. Richard McLaren said in his press conference: “We did not identify an active role of the Russian Olympic Committee.”

What are the responsibilities in the fight against doping?
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is the “independent leader in the fight against doping”, according to the final declaration of the World Conference on Doping in Sport in November 2013 in Johannesburg. Governments of the world and the Olympic Movement share the engagement in and funding of WADA equally. The IOC is coordinating this Olympic Movement participation within WADA. WADA’s role, amongst other things, is to monitor World Anti-Doping Code (WADC)-compliance by signatories; to approve International Standards; and to accredit and reaccredit laboratories. The IOC and the stakeholders have the responsibility of implementing the WADC with regard to their own competitions. The IFs are responsible for ensuring that their National Federations, athletes and athlete support persons are WADC-compliant at all times. For the Olympic Games, this responsibility is shared between the IOC, the IFs and the NOCs. No IF or NOC is declared non-compliant by WADA.