2. State Involvement

Owned by NicolaAvery
Last updated: Dec 18, 2016
5 min read

WADA

IC2p7 The State had the ability to transform a positive analytical result into a negative one by ordering that the analytical process of the Moscow Laboratory
be altered. The Ministry of Sport (MofS), RUSADA and the Russian Federal Security Service (the FSB) were all involved in this operation.


Critique
Rick Sterling http://theduran.com/heres-russian-athletes-unfairly-banned-olympics/The investigation did not hear the factual corrections or counter-arguments of Russian authorities.  McLaren says: "The IP did not seek to interview persons living in the Russian Federation …. I did not seek to meet with Russian government officials and did not think it necessary" Since the Russian Ministry of Sport and other agencies are accused of serious violations in this report, such words provide strong evidence of bias on Mr. McLaren's part. It is a basic standard of fairness to hear from the accused.

* The investigation excluded a written rebuttal supplied by one of the accused Russian individuals.  McLaren says: “I also received, unsolicited, an extensive narrative with attachments from one important government representative described in this report. In the short span of 57 days that I was given to conduct this IP investigation it was simply not practical and I deemed such interviewing would not be helpful. (Page 21)  Since one of the main purposes of the investigation was to determine the truthfulness of Rodchenkov's accusations, this decision to not consider the unsolicited information is shocking. It should have been mandatory to evaluate the arguments and information coming from all sources, including the Russian side.

http://m.strategic-culture.org/news/2016/08/19/russians-held-to-different-standards.html Michael Averko-  his report, McLaren states a need to get it completed by a certain date with the obvious intent to serve as a tool to further propagate the call to ban the Russian athletics (track and field) team, as well as the rest of their Olympic compatriots before the start of the Rio Olympics. WADA's bias against Russia has been clear. It was no surprise that the WADA appointed McLaren went along with their line. It seems that a decision to expel Russia from the Olympic movement was taken probably around the time of the failure of the campaign to boycott the Winter Olympics in Sochi in 2014.  All the various allegations of doping in Russia that have circulated since 2010 and even before were then sifted through to construct a case.  Someone then put them all together in a dossier, spicing them up with witness testimony from people like Stepanova and Rodchenkov.  A series of lurid articles and documentaries then appeared in the Western media, reviving all the allegations and putting the worst possible spin on them.  A series of reports from WADA then followed in quick succession starting in the autumn of last year, timed to make the maximum possible impact and to leave the least possible time for proper independent fact checking or for any other steps to be taken before the start of the Rio Games.

Obviously there was insufficient time to look into each and every allegation of doping properly in the 57 days in which Professor McLaren's investigation was conducted.  However that merely points to the fact that conducting a proper investigation within a timeframe of just 57 days was impossible.  Professor McLaren should have admitted as much and asked for more time to conduct his investigation properly, leaving it to WADA and the IOC to put in place proper arrangements to prevent possible cheating by Russian athletes at the Olympic Games in Rio in the meantime. However that is not what he did.   Instead he delivered an incomplete and defective report and demanded a blanket ban on the strength of it.

JT RussiaReviewed: The report did not include a written submission and documents provided by a Russian authority. It also didn't consider the counter-arguments of the Russian authorities. Mclaren says "The IP did not seek to interview persons living in the Russian Federation¦. I did not seek to meet with Russian government officials and did not think it necessary." Not necessary to speak with the Russian Ministry of Sport, which is accused of serious violations in the report? Even a faceless undergrad blogger like me understands it's a basic standard of fairness to hear both sides of a controversy before reaching a conclusion.

Jen: The timeline shows McLaren would have had about two months to research, interview various people and gather evidence, and then to write up his report and deliver it. He would have had to travel (to Russia among other places) to do the necessary work. How possible is it that he could have done all that he should have within a short time period? Then WADA hands the report to the IOC only a few weeks before the Olympic Games are due to start

Meetings with Russians

IC1 p48 The IC offered, in writing, to meet with the Russian Minister of Sport prior to completing and issuing its Report. A meeting was held in Zurich on 21 September 2015, in the course of which the Minister was invited to provide any comments or information that he considered relevant and was advised in general terms of the state of the IC’s investigation and likely directions.

p68 Given this level of attention and awareness among the various stakeholders, the IC investigators were, as noted elsewhere in this Report, surprised and disappointed by the high number of Russian athletes and officials who refused to respond or participate in this investigation.

IC2 p14 The IP did not seek to interview persons living within the Russian Federation. This includes government officials. My experience on the IC was such that individuals who were identified to give interviews were fearful of speaking to the IC. I did not seek to meet with government officials and did not think it necessary having already done so with the IC with little benefit to that investigation. I also received, unsolicited, an extensive narrative with attachments from one important government representative described in this Report. In the short time of 57 days that I was given to conduct this IP investigation it was simply not practical and I deemed such interviewing would not be helpful based on my experience with the IC.

IC3 p21 The IP encountered reluctance on the part of individual athletes and others to come forward to meet with the investigative team. In order to overcome that reluctance, the IP sought to meet Russian officials once the investigative process to identify facts was complete, so as to enable a meaningful discussing with the officials. On 13 October 2016 in Zurich, Switzerland, the IP and his Chief Investigator met with Mr. Vitaliy Smirnov, who was appointed by President Putin as the Chairman, Independent Public Anti-Doping Commission; Mr. Smirnov was accompanied by Mr. Leonoid Miroshnichenkov. The IP and his Chief Investigator also had the opportunity to meet with the new Minister of Sport, Pavel Kolobokov, in Budapest on 29 November 2016, who was accompanied by Mr. Artem S. Yakubov, Head of the International Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Sport. The IP recognised that a meeting with the newly appointed Deputy Prime Minister, Vitaly Mutko, would be important to the inquiry as to the future of Sport in Russia. Unfortunately, the IP and Deputy Prime Minister Mutko were unable to make suitable meeting arrangements.

McLaren makes an assumption about the reluctance of Russian athletes who refused to be contacted. This reluctance could be due to a mistrust of WADA or similar organisations, it could be for cultural or personal reasons and not why he has assumed they declined participation.