WADA's Russia ban contradicts Olympics charter, Russia has every reason to appeal – Putin

The decision of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to ban Russian athletes from competing under their national flag during the Olympic Games is contrary to the rules of the Olympic movement, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

Russia was punished by WADA on Monday with a number of restrictions, including a prohibition to be represented as a nation at the Olympic Games. Athletes from Russia will likely be able to compete under a neutral flag, but there is a debate as to whether they would be allowed to be called "Olympic Athletes from Russia," or OAR, as was the case during the PyeongChang Games in 2018.

Commenting on the decision on Monday, Putin said at first glance he believed that a particular part of the ruling contradicted the Olympic Charter, the basic rules of the movement.

"There is no complaint about the Russian National Olympic Committee [in WADA's ruling]. And since there is none, the country should compete under a national flag," Putin said during a media conference in France. He added that Russia has "every reason to appeal" to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the judicial body that resolves disputes in international sport.

WADA's sanctions relate to alleged manipulation of raw data by RUSADA, the Russian doping watchdog, which had been handed over to the international agency as part of the reinstatement of the Russian body earlier this year. RUSADA was again declared non-compliant.

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