Doping-free sport: when Russia will return to the world elite

As Novye Izvestia has already reported, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) sided with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in a dispute with the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) and decided to bar Russian athletes from participating in international competitions under the national flag until December 16, 2022. RUSADA was obliged to compensate legal costs, the agency will pay $ 1.27 million. Moreover, for the same period, all top officials of Russia, including Putin, are prohibited from appearing at major international competitions, including the Olympics and world championships.

The well-known publicist Nikolay Travkin ironically advises the Russian authorities, especially about this, not to be sad, but to seize the moment to hold their own Olympics, as it was already in 1980:

“Well, they excommunicated us for 2 years from Olympiads and international competitions, and okay. Just don't whine like the last time: “Where is the evidence? We've never had meldonium, and we destroyed the last one 20 years ago! Urine... what kind of urine, maybe you piss here yourself?"

Let's endure 2 years. What is there to be offended? They carry water to the offended. But you can't just take it and swallow it. Pride will not allow. We must hold our own Olympics. As last time. But not one to one, as in 1980, but a creative approach. Taking into account the national characteristics of the nature of our sport. Is that how our Soviet sport differed from theirs?

They have there - in the world of cash and profit - they look at sport as a person's desire to improve the capabilities of his body. To become stronger, slimmer, more flexible, faster, and thereby raise the price on yourself. Therefore, their sports are professional.

And here in the Soviet Union, sport was necessary to prepare the body to fight the difficulties of life. And since almost everyone had difficulties and watched them at every step, the sport was massive, amateur. For example, was it possible to get on a regular bus without possessing the skills of Greco-Roman wrestling? Yes, not in life, so the whole day at the bus stop and you will stay! But then perestroika, fascination with globalization, glitter of Western tinsel and their pseudo-human values confused us and we rushed to jump-run-swim like everyone else...

Meldonium stopped us. And then smart people in the government immediately remembered the Soviet purpose of sports - preparation for even more difficult tests. Do you remember that 4 years ago volleyball on the snow was officially recognized as a sport?

It is reasonable! After all, what is the use of volleyball on a jagged court, in shorts and adidas slippers? No benefit. Pampering, debauchery and idle pastime. And, here, you jump near this net knee-deep in the snow in felt boots of the Yoshkar-Ola wool factory, and in quilted jackets over the same panties! And then let's see who is "hu" in volleyball.

According to this principle, it is necessary to select other sports and use them to hold a separate international Olympics in Russia. Take the same football and make an amendment that the ball should not be leather and elastic, but rag. As a child, I remember 65 years ago, we played like that. Some guys in chasing with their feet achieved unprecedented virtuosity - you can't put Messi next to!

And also swimming. Everyone is running around with this Phelps! And if you add pieces of ice to the swim lane? Ours does not care, our swimmer will crumble any ice floe, if the Motherland asks. So let's see where this vaunted Phelps will be.

In general, if Vladimir Vladimirovich gives the go-ahead, our Sports Committee can concoct such an Olympics by 2022. All the CIS and CSTO countries will take part, Venezuela and Syria, and North Korea will catch up. It can turn out well. Not worse than last time - in 1980. We then won almost all the medals there..."

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It is curious that by no means all representatives of the Russian authorities were outraged by such a decision of the Arbitration Court. For example, Igor Lebedev, a State Duma deputy from the LDPR faction, called it fair:

“We must stop crying and stop looking for the hand of the West in everything. He is not to blame for our problems. It is not the German Chancellor who makes us eat illegal drugs. Yes, there is a share of politics in this decision, there is a percentage of athletes who suffered undeservedly, but in general the situation looks sad and understandable", - Lebedev told NEWS.ru.

The deputy also said that Russia is obliged to start the fight against doping, criminalize drug use and cover-up, start working with medical personnel, coaches, find officials who admitted and are to blame for the fact that our athletes were deprived of their Olympic medals in Sochi.

“...But instead of fighting, we transfer them to other departments and structures. That's right, give a shit, go and then nasri. It just does not fit into any gate, it is a disgrace. It is not necessary to use a drug - there will be problems", - said Lebedev.

Political scientist Alexey Makarkin, despite the fact that the international sports community recognized the entire Russian government in this story as toxic, considers the punishment of our country rather mild:

“The decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport, from the point of view of the international sports community, is a compromise. WADA sanctions have been eased, Russian athletes have been disqualified not for four, but for two years. This means that Russia will be able to host the Ice Hockey World Championship in 2023. Pure athletes will be able to participate in competitions, including the Olympic Games, in neutral status. This is good news for them - especially for the "older" ones, who are unlikely to remain in sports after the next Olympic Games. And for the younger ones to miss the most important starts means knowingly conceding to foreign competitors and losing chances (often quite real) for medals.

At the same time, a number of exemptions have been made - for example, neutral Russian athletes cannot compete under the country's flag, but will be able to use its colors on their uniforms. It will also have the inscription "Russia" - next to the inscription "neutral athlete". The anthem cannot be performed after the victory, but recognizable national melodies can be used.

But the compromise also has a downside. When the doping scandal just flared up, in the report of the McLaren commission (which was very much criticized in Russia at that time), the wording on the state doping system was softened. Responsibility was assigned to departments, but not to the state as a whole - the difference is outwardly small, but in fact tangible. But after the "relapse" (with numerous changes in the database of the Moscow Anti-Doping Laboratory), the situation changed - relations with the Russian state for sports functionaries became not only problematic, but toxic.

They did not collect a new commission, but the sports court forbade the entire leadership of the country to attend the Games. Thus, the court actually recognizes responsibility for the doping of the state as a whole, and not of individual functionaries and their subordinates - although this is not legally prescribed (also a kind of compromise), since it was not the subject of a lawsuit. It is clear that the Russian authorities are not satisfied with such a compromise, but there is no room for maneuver..."

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But the politician Alexey Melnikov believes that fair punishment can turn out to be beneficial for our athletes, if only the country's authorities draw the right conclusions:

“Two years without a flag, anthem, without world championships on Russian soil. Moreover, with the ban on the head of state Putin and "other officials" from attending the Olympics and world championships. Humiliation. The court in Lausanne delivered the verdict The verdict was fulfilled. Payback for state doping.

It is probably impossible to punish in Russia. Because those who should be punished and those who should be punished are one and the same person. There is no such flexibility of the camp as in rhythmic gymnastics - to bend and angrily bite oneself on the heel.

What to do?

You can, of course, plug in the organ of the Russian Foreign Ministry - it will tremble with anger, blink the bulbs, smoke the Kuzi into the sky thicker, grunted hoarsely that it is “ruuu-sso-phooo-bia”!

The TV set may work - they will tell you that "doping is used all over the world, but only Russia has been punished." That is, “we are like everyone else” - we feel warm from the fact that thieves are not alone.

But here we will stop. Enough about them.

If someone in the world needs to be doped, then let him be with him. And our country needs to draw a conclusion and start from scratch - there should be no doping at all. You need to compete honestly. And our main task now is fair sport. Only such a victory is worth striving for. And, by the way, having cleared our sport of doping crap, having lived like this for ten to fifteen years, we will have the right to condemn those in the world who really use doping.

There is also an economic incentive - pay, authorities, athletes not for victories, but for participation. Pay generously - the same as for victories. Let them not use doping in order to get "gold" and thereby earn. It's the same with coaches.

And stop presenting to citizens the inflated victories in sports as an excuse for their failures at home and in the world - put aside this cheap substitute for reality.

In the meantime, for two years, Russia, as a world sports power, evaporates from world sports, leaving a dirty residue on the bottom of the Sochi Olympic flask. Putin's "effective managers" did a good job.

Someday we are a country, we will start all over again, having freed ourselves from the sticky sovereign lies, taking a deep breath. And not only in sports. Victories will come by themselves. Imperceptibly. As deserved and due..."