Watch FIFA World Cup 2026™

LIVE, FREE and EXCLUSIVE starting June 12 2026

Russia says progress in anti-doping reforms unrecognised

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia has made significant leaps in its anti-doping reforms but the progress is not being recognised by the international community, sports officials from the country said on Thursday.

Russia says progress in anti-doping reforms unrecognised
(Reuters)

Russia's athletics federation, Paralympic committee and anti-doping agency (RUSADA) remain suspended after reports commissioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) alleged state-sponsored doping.

WADA in August called on Russia's anti-doping authorities to accept publicly the findings of the WADA-commissioned McLaren investigation, which found evidence of widespread doping and manipulation of doping tests by Russian athletes and officials.

Public acceptance of the report by Russia is a condition laid down by WADA for RUSADA'S full reinstatement, but Russian authorities have always denied the state's role in the scandal.

At a meeting of a state-backed anti-doping commission with representatives of Russian sports federations on Thursday, officials said Russia's progress was being overlooked.

News that makes sense

Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

"Our international colleagues are very poorly informed about the efforts undertaken by our country in anti-doping over the last while," said commission head Vitaly Smirnov. "Our accomplishments are silenced. This is very bad."

Smirnov said the commission had prepared English-language brochures about Russia's reforms in a bid to get its message out.

He urged the heads of the sports federations present -- including tennis, swimming and athletics -- to hand them out to foreign colleagues at international sporting events.

"Unfortunately the information (about reforms) is not reaching everyone," the president of Russia's Olympic Committee, Alexander Zhukov, told the sports federations' officials.

"This is why it's very important for you to get this information to the international federations."

Zhukov stressed Russia had made significant progress towards its rehabilitation on the international stage, calling WADA's decision in June to allow RUSADA to plan and coordinate testing "a big step forward".

He conceded, however, that Russia still had "lots to do" to be fully reinstated.

(Reporting by Gabrielle Tétrault-Farber; Editing by Toby Davis)


2 min read

Published

Source: Reuters



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News straight to your inbox

Sign up now for daily news from Australia and around the world. You can also subscribe to Insight's weekly newsletter for in-depth features and first-person stories.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Follow SBS News

Download our apps

Listen to our podcasts

Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service

Stream now

Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world