Translated material
Pyrrhic victory
The decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to allow Russia to participate in the Olympic Games in Brazil can be regarded as the victory of Russian diplomacy, but in fact it means that the IOC does not want to quarrel with anyone and seeks to transfer responsibility to sports federations. Thus, experts comment on the IOC idea not to remove Russia from OI-2016 after a doping scandal, the investigation of the WADA World Anti-Doping Agency and the decision of the CAS sports arbitration court in Lausanne.
The IOC left the final decision on individual athletes and teams for international sports federations. Russian athletes who have ever come across doping will not go to Rio games.
According to sports journalist Nikita Belogolovtsev, such an outcome could be expected only because the decision on the total detachment of the Russian national team would be a precedent discriminatory in relation to Russian athletes.
Nikita Belogolovtsev“I think the decision of the IOC means the following:“ We, the International Olympic Committee, do not want to quarrel with anyone, we do not want to decide anything and want to shift the responsibility for making decisions to someone else. ”
In general, indeed, all those words that were spoken in the process of discussion, and those unexpectedly strong statements that [the head of the Olympic Committee of Russia] made a decision of the IOC Executive Committee - about the fact that we do not treat cancer, but cut off the head with the tumor ( "But the question arises: if you destroy the tumor, chopping off the patient and thereby killing it, is it possible to consider this victory in this. The battle? " - said Zhukov. Approx. Ed ) - this is, in general, the absolute truth.
Indeed, the decision on the total detachment of the Russian team would be - it doesn’t matter whether it is politicized or not - loud, case. And, whatever one may say, discriminatory against Russian athletes. In general, this is really some step away from the Olympic Charter, all these values of movement. Therefore, it is logical that they tried to avoid this decision in the IOC.
What will happen to the criteria is completely incomprehensible. It is clear that the criteria will be tough. It is clear that they will vary depending on the sport. And it is clear that the positions in individual federations, in individual sports, are far from the strongest. In general, probably, with one hundred percent certainty, it is possible to say that athletics for Russia at this Olympics - by, heavy athletics - by, the rest is discussed. Well, probably judo - not by. But all this is now very inaccurate, fortune -telling on the coffee grounds, what will go there and where.
That is, it is clear that someone will go, and it is clear that in the current conditions this can be called without irony by the victory of our diplomacy ... Well, that is, a trip to the Olympiad against the backdrop of all that madness that our sports authorities engaged is, in principle, the victory of diplomacy. But at the same time, the situation in which we found ourselves is a monstrous defeat of diplomacy.
The issue of whether we filed a lawsuit in the arbitration court is actively discussing. If you explain on the fingers, we could submit it to the IOC for violation of the Olympic Charter, but we could apply to the athletics Federation - if I am not mistaken, for the curve formulations of the causes of our deviation. And we-again, if I am not mistaken, filed a lawsuit against the athletics federation for violation of the Olympic Charter, combining one with the other. And sports lawyers claim that this is a crooked lawsuit and that we did not fight very correctly.
Elena Isinbaeva / Ax-sport.infoBut if we talk, for example, about the reaction of Elena Isinbaeva, her words that Russian athletes fought poorly was very strange to hear. Because, in general, it is clear that everything is on emotions. But when you are talking about pseudo -sportsmen in one interview, pseudo -eaters, conspiracies and everything else, and at the same time you accuse the Olympic committee, the Federation and the Russian sports authorities of poor protection, this does not fight with each other. Here, either a conspiracy, or is poorly protected. And if both the conspiracy is not defended, then this is already completely frivolous, sorry.
In this situation - well, what can I say? Again: which, of course, will be a shame for the "pure athletes"; Of course, it will be a shame for athletes who have already left their disqualification. Apparently, for example, a swimmer [Julia] Efimova, [disqualified for 16 months in May 2014] will not go anywhere, although her disqualification ended, and she was acquitted according to Meldonia. And, in general, this is really a discrimination on a national basis-when one athletes who have served disqualification for doping are allowed to go to the Olympics, while others are prohibited. But, on the other hand, although it looks beautiful in the headlines - the allegations that we are discriminated by a national basis - we ourselves created a situation in which we allow ourselves to discriminate against this very national basis.
In general, it could have been worse if the IOC simply banned the whole team as a whole. It’s good that at least so allowed. And at the same time, unfortunately, the situation is very dual. On the one hand, reasonable fans are pleased that at least someone will go to the Olympics, because still the athletes were preparing, and all that. On the other hand, it is very offensive to the same reasonable fans that, apparently, conclusions will not be drawn from the situation - or incorrect conclusions will be drawn.
Because now all the rhetoric is formed on the principle of “damned Americans (Americans - as a collective image of everything bad in this world) tried to humiliate us demonstratively, and we have fought off, that are the well done!” But in fact, of course, no well done - of course, all this is monstrous. All this is not just a call for Russian sports, but such a loud bell. You cannot live according to the laws of the 1980s.
It is clear that it is necessary to carry out large -scale cleaning; It is clear that it is necessary to fire crowds of people; It is clear that it is necessary to appoint people not personally devotees, but those who can build the entire system. It is clear that we have lost almost all levers of influence in sports federations. And this attempt “and let us be a member of the Executive Committee of the IOC Smirnov will appoint the head of our anti-doping public commission, which will check something there, and Smirnov will try to negotiate with someone there”, all this is not even the past, but a century before last. So do not live.
Apparently, the experience of obtaining the Olympics [in Sochi 2014] and the World Cup [in 2018] played an angry joke with us. Olympiads - when [Russian President Vladimir] Putin came to Guatemala, he performed there, said that we would spend any money - and everyone was fascinated. Or the World Cup - when [ the Honorary President of the Russian Football Union Vyacheslav ] Koloskov carried people in Russia on old ties, agreed, settled in good hotels. And it seemed to everyone that it all worked like that.
Well, that is, in Russia everyone is accustomed to negotiate with each other like that, this is our usual mantra: “In fact, they are also all the same, all the embezzlers, bribe takers, do not differ from us!” Or these eternal statements: “All the media lie, so ours are no worse”, “All officials steal, so ours are no worse” - all this is at a dead end and has brought us out. Because not everything is the same everywhere, sometimes something works according to other laws. And you must either recognize it, or once again get on the nose.
Now about the situation with the [informant WADA Begunya Julia] Stepnova. Honestly, I did not really follow her: at some point it was said that she was amnestied, but she seemed to not fall under the latest decisions of the IOC Executive Committee, since I came across doping. Well? The forest is chopped - chips fly. Julia Stepanova and her husband decided on a strong act, for what kind of reasons they decided - for monetary or because the soul hurts - this is another matter, it does not really apply to the situation. As far as the decisions of the steppe and her husband were a sincere impulse and how insincere, it can be said very much.
Athlete Julia StepanovaI think that if, in the end, Stepanov does not go anywhere, then for athletes of different countries, not only Russian athletes, it will be such an unpleasant signal that it is better not to give anyone away, you will get anything under a hot hand. In terms of the fight against doping, it seems to me that this is not very correct: all the largest scandals and all the largest revelations in both sports and outside, occur through informants. You can argue for a long time about whether it is ethical or not, a person or not, has done a duty or hidden - these are already issues of the personal ethics of each person. But in fact, most of all are revealed on the testimony, on informants.
Stepanova will not go anywhere - everyone will see that WADA and IOC do not protect their informants. On the other hand, if we return to Russia, this will be another signal from the series "Do not give up the corporation." But this is such a dual signal: on the one hand, “do not give up the corporation - it will be worse,” and on the other, “the corporation will not protect you anyway, be you at least Elena Isinbaeva or Sergey Shubenkov.” In general, athletes are one way or another - the extreme that they are upset, ”said Nikita Belogovtsev.