Olympic chief says will "do everything" to ensure Russia at 2020 Games

Russia's Olympic Committee will do all it can to ensure Russian athletes take part in 2020 Games, its chief said Thursday, as country faces a four-year doping ban. "We will do everything in our power to ensure our team is in Tokyo under Russian flag," news ncy RIA vosti quoted Stanislav Pozdnyakov as saying. He said re were "objective obstacles" to "vast majority" of Russian athletes fully participating in Olympics.

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compliance review committee at World Anti-Doping ncy (WA) on Monday recommended a four-year sporting ban over falsified lab data it received from Russia. If WA chiefs opt committee's recommendations at a meeting in Paris on December 9, Russia faces exclusion from key sporting events including 2020 Tokyo Olympics. scandal has tainted Russia's sporting reputation since revelation of large-scale state-sponsored doping aimed at improving Russia's medal performance at 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

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Russian track and field athletes were barred from competing at Rio Olympics in 2016 although Russians competing in or events were allowed to take part. ban was widened to include all events at 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, though Russian competitors who could prove y were above suspicion were able to compete as neutrals under Olympic flag. Monday's call from WA review panel came after Russian authorities were accused of falsifying laboratory data related to country's doping scandal, which were handed over to investigators in January. International Olympic Committee (IOC) has said it backs " toughest sanctions against all those responsible for this manipulation," while cautioning against blanket sanctions that would punish incent. If Russia challenges an eventual suspension by WA case will go to Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport, whose decision will be binding on sports bodies including International Olympic Committee. 

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