Crisis of Russian biathlon

The 52nd Biathlon World Championship, held in the Austrian Hochfilzen, has not yet completed, became an arena of several scandals at once. Almost all of them are connected with doping.

It is necessary to start with the fact that Russia was predictably deprived of the 2021 world championship in Tyumen after, however, as at the Extraordinary Congress of the International Biathlon Union (IBU) in Hochfilzen, an open letter of 170 biathlonists from different countries was announced, which demanded to change the anti -doping system. They proposed to increase up to eight years for the disqualification period of athletes caught in doping, as well as increase the fine for the corresponding violations. The changes have not yet been adopted, but IBU has released a clear resolution: the Russian side was proposed to voluntarily refuse the world championship, and in case of disobedience the tournament was still promised to take away, but with more serious consequences for the Russian biathlon.

This was due to numerous violations of the anti -doping rules of recent years in which Russian athletes were involved. In particular, the disqualification of Irina of the Old and Alexander Loginov, punished precisely for these sins, has just completed. They were allowed to start in Hochfilzen, but literally after the first type of competition - a mixed relay, in which the Russians won a bronze medal - the scandal continued: on suspicion of doping, Ekaterina Glazyrina was removed from participation in the sprint. The reason for the sanction against it was the report of the Independent Commission of the World Anti -Doping Agency under the leadership of Richard McLaren . Apparently, the research data contains a certain compromising evidence on Glazyrin, and IBU reported on his website that he had already formed a working group for a more detailed investigation of a possible violation of anti -doping rules.

IBU President Anders Besserberg is known for his moderate views, in particular, he always said that they must be punished by those whose guilt is fully proven and not to punish the innocent. In the case of Glazyrina, it seems that IBU has such evidence ...

Recall that recently, Russia, in addition to the World Cup in Biathlon, has lost the right to hold a number of large competitions, including the World Bobslie Championship in Sochi, the stage of the Biathlon World Cup in Tyumen and the junior world championship in Biathlon, the final of the World Cup in Chelyabinsk. In addition, several leading skiers at once are removed from performances - however, without explaining specific reasons. These included Alexander Perevkov, Evgeny Belov, Maxim Vylegzhanin, Alexey Petukhov, Julia Ivanova and Evgenia Shapovalov. In February, sanctions against them were extended. In response, the Russian ski racing Federation plans to appeal to the sports arbitration court in Lausanne.

Since last year, it is clear that the prestigious sport, on the development of which Russian sports leaders made a bet in a serious crisis

That is, we are talking about the fact that there is a certain “preparation” for the main event of the four -year period - the deprivation of Russia the right to hold the 2018 World Cup. Of course, this is a difficult matter, taking into account the 2017 Confederations Cup in Russia . According to the rules of the International Football Federation, it is held a year before the World Cup precisely in the country hosting this tournament. On this basis, many football experts say that it is too late to cancel the World Cup, since Russia is completely ready for it. But this is a controversial question. Firstly, so far only two arenas are completely ready: “Opening-Arena” in Moscow and the stadium in Kazan. According to the terms of the FIFA, the stadiums should be prepared to start the Confederations Cup. Until it has begun, options are possible. Nobody will prevent FIFA, say, hold this tournament in Russia, and the championship itself is transferred to another country or countries, for example, Spain and Portugal, Belgium and the Netherlands, which has submitted a joint application, or England. But in any case, this issue has not yet been considered, as well as the final distribution of medals at the Sochi Olympiad (also a very painful issue for the Russian leadership). But with the Biathlon World Cup, everything was decided - alas, not in favor of Russia.

However, the Russians in biathlon forums in recent years have not pleased their fans. Suffice it to say that in 2016, in Holmenkollen, Russia could not win a single medal . I repeat: not a single one! But Russian biathletes have always been considered favorites at the world championships. The trend continues in the current tournament: there are 4 places, there are failure performances, there is participation in high-profile scandals, like the statement that the Frenchman Martin Fourcade prevented the Russians Alexander Loginov and Anton Shipulin at the stage, and then left the podium during the award ... However, the charges of Fursad in distances were not proven, and it was not publicly with Shipulin. Reconciled. Russia has only one medal. There are six races ahead, but from last year it is clear that the prestigious sport, on the development of which Russian sports leaders bet in a serious crisis.