After over a century of international games celebrating friendly global competition, the International Olympic Committee has announced that they will be fully banning the Russian Federation from participating in the 2018 Winter Olympics, the first time a nation has ever been forbidden from sending competitors.
Officially, this is being done to punish Russia for doping among athletes. In reality, the move was heavily lobbied for by the US and a series of allies, a push that was primarily about US-Russia tensions in recent years.
The doping scandal, after all, was nothing particularly new, and accusations of doping among athletes from Eastern Europe have gone back for generations without any such bans being seriously contemplated.
The IOC says it will allow certain athletes from Russia to participate under a “neutral” flag, but only in individual events. No Russian teams will be allowed to be fielded in any team sports.
The US, of course, praised the move, saying that excluding the Russians was a “strong and principled decision” for the IOC, and one that ensures doping will never happen again.
Lance Armstrong…call your office…
Translation: Snowflake US Olympians want to avoid competition with Russian athletes.
You hit the nail squarely on the head with that statement; snowflake US Olympians want to avoid competition with Russian athletes .. In other words, they’re afraid of losing to the Russian athletes.
Talk about IOC corruption, this takes the cake. No Russian athlete has been doping with steroids since the USSR collapsed. The IOC sorely needs a total house cleaning. Remove all of the corrupt officials and replace them with those of honesty and integrity ASAP, so that Russia can be re-instated.
Disgusting and filthy decision. The corruption of the IOC is LEGENDARY and its clear that nothing has changed.
No evidence, just the lies of the known criminal doper Rodchenko. Seriously, he gets busted, flies the coup, runs to Murica and tells stories taht his doping exploits were not for money but under Russian gov approval? Absurd, but our governments and media and the corrupt IOC simply choose to accept his lies as its useful to their agenda.
There you have it. No American action against DPRK until after the Americans come home with double their usual medal count, thanks to the lack of competition. Are you tired of winning yet ?
No American action against DPRK
Here’s hoping the DPRK oblige us to wait.
The whole idea of athletes having to represent nations is SO last century. You know, the one that spawned two world wars and the unnecessary deaths of tens of millions of people, all for what? Patriotism? Nationalism? We know those wars were all about Money, just like all professional sports.
I’m going to boycott the f-ing Olympics on principle, and it has nothing whatsoever to do with drugs.
I’ll be spending all my Bitcoins at the World Cup in Russia this summer. Nothing left for Korea, too bad as I just had my lead suit cleaned and pressed.
McCarthyite snowflakes should have listened to their girl:
“Not accepting the results of our election is a direct assault on our democracy. Don’t be a sore loser.”
– Crooked Hillary
What does this have to do with the article, besides the tired, shopworn right-wing cliches? “snowflakes.” “crooked hillary.” jesus christ, give it a rest already, or at least come up with something new.
Korea will likely be a war zone. Good one for any sane country to sit out the games.
Another “victory” for America’s juvenile foreign “policy”; a series of disconnected and provocative acts with no purpose.
THAD got ROK a tourism and consumer boycott from China. Trump is ready to fight the DPRK to the last Korean (North or South). Excluding Russia will make the winter Olympics a dud.
Perhaps the ROK will realise that China can effectively guarantee its security against a North Korean attack without turning the entire peninsula into a wasteland.
Even from observing the disgusting everyday behavior of the “Exceptional Country” and the lies and cruel actions being taken by the deranged leaders of the Democratic Party” and the “Republicans” to “punish the Russians” for alleged crimes against the farce which passes for elections in the USA, I did not think this mean-spirited vicious attack on athletes would really occur.
The Canadian report banning Russian athletes from Rio in 2016 was based on lies from two ex-Russian athletes who had been condemned by Russia for doping offenses. Of course the Russian responses were ignored.
In 2008 the USA spoiled the start of the Beijing Olympics with the Georgia interference.
In 2014 they did their best to stop the success of the Sochi Winter Olympics.
Not forgetting the boycott of Moscow Olympics in 1980 to punish the USSR for invading Afghanistan. After 16 years of US being stuck there, they do not realize the irony???
And Trump promised us better relations with Russia. New boss same as old boss.
This sucks. Beyond the undeserved screw job against Russia, this Winter Olympics will now be ruined.