Yesterday the Kremlin dumped on their superstar Maria Sharapova for failing a drug test after her Australian Open quarter-final defeat by Serena Williams last January.
Their statement said Sharapova’s failure should not be considered a reflection on Russian sport.
So was it the Kremlin, or to be more precise the thoughts of president Vladimir Putin?
Either way, Russia has been a cesspool of lies.
Turn the clock back to 2010 when Russia was awarded the 2018 FIFA World Cup, and Qatar the 2022 – neither decision passed the smell test.
Disgraced former FIFA president Sepp Blatter eventually admitted Russia and the USA were going to win the hosting jobs well before the vote was taken.
It was a done deal.
» The Roar’s Joe Frost on meldonium and what it does to athletes.
UEFA boss Michel Platini had a change of heart and threw his weight behind Qatar instead of the USA, and that’s where we are today.
Both decisions stink.
Putin showed his “class” by suggesting Blatter be awarded a Pulitzer Prize for all the good things he has done for the round ball sport throughout his career.
I can’t remember anyone found guilty of corruption and collusion ever being awarded a Pulitzer Prize.
But both Blatter and Platini have been awarded what they deserved – an eight-year ban from soccer worldwide.
If the new FIFA boss Gianni Infantino has any bottle, he would get the governing body to strip Russia of the 2018 World Cup and award it to England with a plethora of major stadiums already operative.
Then strip Qatar of the 2022 Cup and award it to Australia with plenty of time to update facilities.
The next to make a positive stand against Russian lies must be the relatively new IOC boss Thomas Bach.
Last year it surfaced Russian athletes were constantly taking banned substances because knew they were either never going to be tested by corrupt officials, or the damning evidence would be conveniently ‘lost’ if WADA was around.
IAAF president Sebastian Coe has banned Russian track and field from the Rio Olympics until Russia can prove it’s conforming with WADA guidelines.
There’s no way the Russians can prove they are telling the truth between now and August 5 when the Rio Games begin, so Thomas Bach can step in and ban Russia from the Games altogether.
And why?
Now we have meldonium which is Maria Sharapova’s problem for not taking any notice of five emails since October last year. The emails warned meldonium was about to be banned that became effective January 1.
Nor did champion Russian speed skater Pavel Kulizhniken take any notice of the emails, or ice dancing champion gold medallist Ekaterina Bobrova and her partner Dmitry Soloviev, both have been banned from the world championships in Boston later this month.
The more we read about it, it stands to reason dope cheating in Russian sport is endemic across the board.
“Not so,” was Dmitry Svishchev’s reply who has accused the western world of unfairly targeting Russian sport.
Svishchev is head of the Russian parliamentary committee on sport, and he must be wondering when president Putin is going to knock on his door with a one-way ticket to Siberia.
So much for trying to prove communism is far stronger than those “decadent” democracies.
While Russia keeps cheating and telling lies, ban all their sports from international competition.
So what if president Putin spits he dummy, the world is used to that.
Bakkies
Guest
I think the IRB caught two of their players using the same drug.
pete bloor
Guest
Minus the comic timing
marcel
Guest
David, you sound more and more like Abe Simpson with each passing article
Blubber
Guest
I always thought the Thorpedo swim suit was a form of cheating.
Ben
Guest
I find it hilarious rather than depressing. It gives new meaning to the term 'fitness junkies'. Better meldonium than a carton and a pack of cigarettes I guess.
Maggie
Guest
I agree. There are a lot of xenophobic attitudes being shown by people commenting on this issue.
P B
Guest
Look at all the AMERICANS who are CONSTANTLY caught in the olympics. I must have missed your article trashing them? And is Lance Armstrong the ballsiest drugs cheat ever? It is sporting de rigeur to treat each drugs cheat as an individual, not an indictment on the entire sporting population of a nation. No need to break form just because you have a special sort of ignorance about Russia.
Dianne Andrews
Guest
An example of irony - The Russian Rugby 7's team wearing "Keep Rugby Clean" tops last year during the athletics doping and corruption scandal. Not accusing them but can't completely trust them.
TG
Guest
Let's not forget the ex Russian head of sport who was going to write a tell-all book including corruption and doping recently. Died of "heart failure" a day later after announcing he was writing the book.
Clavers
Guest
At the Moscow Olympics in 1980 Australian triple jumper Ken Campbell was unjustly fouled by a Russian judge in an act that commentator and former Olympian Ron Clarke described as "sheer robbery." The action enabled a Soviet athlete to take the gold medal instead of Campbell.
Josh
Guest
I think David has been watching too many Spy movies where the bad guys are always Russians. If you wrote this as a satirical piece then I am mildly impressed. However, if you actually believe what you wrote then I have grave concerns for your mental health. Sorry to say. Once upon a time the Pulitzer Prize was awarded for contributions to Journalism, Literature and the general field of writing. I did not realize that it now includes connections to the round ball game. Maybe David Beckham will be in the running for the next Pulitzer. Or maybe even you, David.
HarryT
Guest
It was very depressing to hear that sales of meldonium have shot through the roof, and that the manufacturer is boosting profits by doubling the price. The same thing happened with steroids after Ben Johnson won in Seoul.
football
Guest
it looks to have taken David about 7 minutes to write this piece. "spits he dummy"
Rodney Olsen
Guest
Very messy situation all round in Russia, got to agree with David and some of the comments although I do agree we shouldn't throw stones. Just look at our local sporting codes over the last few years, each one has had people fail a drug test from AFL, RL, RU, Soccer, Cricket and so on.
Ben
Guest
What has changed in the last forty years? Nike's annual revenue has climbed from $250 million a year (1980) to $30.601 billion a year (2015) for one (underscoring how lucrative professional sport has become). Doping = winning, winning = $$$$$$$, doping = $$$$$$$. Just don't get caught.
northerner
Guest
She has a lawyer. Both she and the lawyer will be well aware that the best she can hope for is mitigation of the penalty. She was caught dead to rights and there are really no excuses for "not knowing" about the changes, given that they'd been announced months before they were implemented.
northerner
Guest
The Pulitzer, so far as I know, is an American prize issued for worthy American journalism, drama and literature. What it has to do with Putin or soccer is anyone's guess.
Michael l
Guest
She should have hired herself a lawyer. They would have been inundated with the new rule changes which would have saved her reputation and millions of dollars in sponsorship.
HarryT
Guest
Forty years ago this year, the East German female swimming team won all but two gold medals at the Montreal Olympics. Stasi files revealed that these women were part of a state sanctioned doping regime that involved 10,000 athletes. A ten year study (2001-12) of drug tests by the IAAF found that 800 of 5,000 athletes showed high suggestions of doping and that 80% of Russian medallists at the London Olympics, recorded tests that showed likely doping. My question is, when I look at T&F, NFL, MLB and cycling, what has changed in the last forty years? Not much, sadly, as dopers are still winners. There probably needs to be a complete cultural shift that emphasises the way people win which is why I appreciate this article so much.
Darwin Stubbie
Guest
what a mess of a piece