Open source

National anti-doping organizations (NADO) of 17 countries across the world signed the petition, asking the International Olympic Committee to keep Russia away from 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. Guardian reported that with reference to the petition.

‘We have serious doubts that the 2018 Games will be clean due to the incomplete investigation of massive evidence of individual doping by Russian athletes at the 2014 Sochi Olympic Games and given the inadequate testing evidence of Russian athletes over the past four years. A country’s sport leaders and organisations should not be given credentials to the Olympics when they intentionally violate the rules and rob clean athletes,’ reads the petition handed over to the IOC.

The NADO also pointed out that the 2014 investigation into doping has not been conducted in full extent, while results of doping tests over the last four years are insufficient.

Previously, the independent investigation of the World Anti-Doping Agency, WADA, showed that over a thousand Russian athletes performing in 30 sports were more or less involved in doping use. Media attention in this regard began growing in December 2014 when German broadcaster ARD reported on state-sponsored doping in Russia, comparing it to doping in East Germany. In November 2015, the WADA published a report and the International Assoociation of Athletic Federations (IAAF) suspended Russia indefinitely from world track and field events. The United Kingdom Anti-Doping agency later assisted WADA with testing in Russia. In June 2016, they reported that they were unable to fully carry out their work and noted intimidation by armed FSB agents. After a Russian former lab director made allegations about the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, WADA commissioned an independent investigation led by Richard McLaren. McLaren's investigation found corroborating evidence, concluding in a report published in July 2016 that the Ministry of Sport and the FSB had operated a "state-directed failsafe system" using a "disappearing positive [test] methodology" (DPM) from "at least late 2011 to August 2015".