This archive report was first published on 26 November 2019.
On November 26, 2019, the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) recommended a four-year ban on Russia from major sporting competitions, citing the country's falsification of laboratory data. However, the Euro 2020 football tournament is exempt from this ban, according to a Wada source.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, stated that the European championships are not considered a 'major event' and therefore do not fall under the proposed ban. This means that Russia will still host matches in the tournament, including those scheduled to take place in the city of Saint Petersburg.
Wada's Compliance Review Committee had called for the sanctions, which would have seen Russia banned from the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, to be approved at a Wada executive committee meeting in Paris on December 9, 2019. However, individual Russian athletes may still compete in events such as the Olympics, provided they can prove they are not implicated in the broader doping scandal.
At the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, Russian athletes who were able to prove their innocence were able to compete under the special designation of 'Olympic Athlete from Russia', marching under the Olympic flag.
It is worth noting that if the sanctions are approved by Wada's Executive Committee, Russia can appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
