Olympia 2018: CAS: Reasons for judgement in Russian cases as soon as possible

Following the criticism of IOC President Thomas Bach, the International Sports Court has emphasized that it should publish the reasons for the verdict “as soon as possible” in the cases of the 39 Russian athletes who are no longer banned from the Olympic Games for life. This was explained by John Coates, Chairman of the ICAS Supervisory Board.

Last week, CAS lifted the lifelong Olympic suspensions of 28 Russian winter sportsmen and women for violations of the anti-doping guidelines at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi. In eleven other cases, doping violations were detected and the objections were only partially confirmed.

These athletes remain removed from Sochi’s result lists, but CAS also lifted the lifelong Olympic suspensions. However, no detailed reasons for the decision have yet been given.

We have expressed some concerns about the quality of this decision,”said Bach and warned against changes:” We believe that this decision demonstrates the need for internal reforms in CAS. It is not only the IOC’s right, but also its duty to express its concerns. “We can’t have a situation where the CAS loses its credibility with the athletes.”

Coates, himself an IOC member and former vice president, said in the opinion that CAS has taken note of and will carefully examine Bach’s concerns, saying:”Athletes are entitled to have confidence in the legal proceedings at all levels, especially before CAS,”said Coates.