Russia banned from 2016 Summer Paralympics
By Brad Weiss
Russia had some athletes banned from the 2016 Rio Olympics, but all athletes will be banned from the Paralympics.
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The 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio will feature the best disabled athletes from all over the world. However, one country will not be sending any athletes to the competition, as the entire Russian team has been banned.
The Paralympics will not follow the path created by the Summer Games, as they decided to only ban some of the Russian athletes from competing. In total, 271 Russians will be able to go after medals during the 2016 Rio Games, despite recommendations from the World Anti-Doping Agency to ban the entire country.
The International Paralympic Committee is basing their ban on a report from Professor Richard McLaren, who found that Russia had a state-sponsored doping program. In the report, he found the program was put in place before the London 2012 Olympics, and continued through the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.
The IPC board met with the Russians this past Wednesday, giving the country the opportunity for written and oral arguments. The meeting lasted three hours, but apparently, it did little to sway the IPC’s decision for a blanket ban on all Russian athletes.
During the 2012 Paralympic Games in London, Russia finished second overall in the medal count, winning 102 medals overall. China won the Games, blowing away the competition by collecting 231 medals in total.
The 2016 Summer Paralympics in Rio will begin on September 7 and will run through the 18th. Because Rio won the bidding for the Summer Olympics, they will also host the Paralympics. In 2020, Tokyo will play host to the Summer Games, and will become the first country to host two Paralympics.