Raelene Boyle adds to calls for Russia to be banned from Tokyo 2020 over doping fears
Raelene Boyle knows what it is like to be robbed by a drugs cheat. That’s why the former Olympic sprinter pulls no punches on the subject of Russia’s systematic doping: kick cheats out.
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Their own anti-doping agency swapped tainted urine samples for clean ones through a hole in the wall. Their state-sponsored computer hackers, Fancy Bear, have erased positive drug tests under the nose of authorities. Isn’t it time Russia were banned from the biggest stage in world sport?
Olympic sprinter Raelene Boyle, who was robbed of gold because of East German’s state-sponsored doping in the 1970s, thinks so.
“Russia can’t be included in next year’s Olympics. I think just get rid of them, ban them,” said Boyle, a triple Olympic silver medallist.
“They can create their own event where they can all cheat and compete against each other. They can spread their propaganda internally. They don’t deserve to compete in the free world.
“No cheat deserves to compete in the free world of sport.”
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There’s never been a country more deserving of being expelled from the Olympics than Russia.
This week the boss of Australia’s Anti-Doping Agency David Sharpe told The Daily Telegraph ’s David Riccio he wants Russia banned from the Tokyo Olympics next year — if it’s proven they have cheated the system — yet again.
But, really, Russia’s systematic doping revealed in the lead-up to the Summer Olympics in 2016 should have been enough for a blanket ban of the country. It wasn’t, and now it’s been revealed that they’ve manipulated and deleted lab data.
It was late September when the World Anti-Doping Authority discovered that evidence of failed drug tests by Russian athletes was missing from the data they had retrieved from Moscow Laboratory in January. That data had been transferred to WADA as a condition to lift the three-year ban on Russia in late 2018.
This week Microsoft revealed to The New York Times that state-sponsored Russian hackers Fancy Bear carried out cyber attacks on sixteen individuals and organisations in the sports and anti-doping world. Those attacked in September included WADA, US Anti-Doping Authority and Australia’s own Anti-Doping Authority.
The cyber attacks are believed to be payback for criticism of Russia after the Moscow Lab data went “missing”.
It was also, a clear threat to those who believe Russia should be banned from Olympics if that “missing” data doesn’t resurface.
Boyle, who is a vocal advocate for clean sport, said this latest Russian incident “disgusts” her. “It just disgusts me on behalf of all those athletes who have been cheated out of whatever they deserve,” Boyle said. “I feel sorry for all the young sportspeople it affects. It’s just wrong. I hate wrong. I really hate wrong.
“Honesty, is such a virtue I live by, but it hasn’t always served me well. The International Olympic Committee don’t see it as a virtue in many ways …”
Earlier this year Boyle made a public appeal to the Olympic hierarchy, including the International Olympic Committee boss Thomas Bach, to acknowledge the medals she and others missed out on due to competing against East German athletes.
The Olympic bosses cited the statute of limitations as the reason they can’t reinstate the medals — Boyle and many others are still considering their options on this issue.
It all seems grossly unfair, which is the theme that seems to permeate world sport.
Anti-doping, ridding world sport of cheats, is an issue no sporting authority has a real handle on. Just a few days ago, Michael Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, winning 23 golds, three silvers and two bronze during an illustrious career, told CNN he believes he “never competed in a clean field once” in his life.
“That has to change,” Phelps told CNN when asked about doping in sport.
“If you test positive once, you should never be allowed to compete again.”
And those athletes still competing who do call out and protest cheating pay for it. Literally. A couple of months ago, Australian swimmer Mack Horton suffered an enormous price after his silent protest against the scourge of doping in his sport.
Before the swimming world championships last July, Horton was shortlisted to be one of Coca-Cola’s ambassadors for the Tokyo Games. Horton’s face was to be on billboards in the host city and a six-figure sum the reward for being part of Coca-Cola’s upbeat marketing campaign.
But talks were ended after Horton refused to share the podium with Chinese swimmer Sun Yang after the 400 metres freestyle final in South Korea.
Horton’s silent protest was against the decision to let Sun compete while still facing an appeal for destroying his own doping samples with a hammer.
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And so we head into the Olympic Games with its integrity on the line — again. Somehow those in charge of the sports and anti-doping need to resurrect it and the only way is to expunge itself of blatant cheats.
The easiest decision WADA could make needs to be made in Poland next week, where every international anti-doping agency will convene for a conference: Russia needs to be banned.
“It’s really an example of the power of sport, though,” Boyle said. “That the Russians think the power of success is sport is a powerful thing in the eyes of the free world.
“Which means it’s important to keep it on the straight and narrow and expose as many cheats as you can — or simply don’t let them compete again.”
Originally published as Raelene Boyle adds to calls for Russia to be banned from Tokyo 2020 over doping fears
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