(Ottawa, Ontario – February 11, 2019) – The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) acknowledges the decision issued on February 8, 2019 by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) conditionally reinstating the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC).
After a 29-month long sanction for RPC’s involvement with the doping activity laid out in the McLaren Report, the IPC Governing Board has decided to conditionally reinstate the RPC. This conditional reinstatement comes with the RPC having implemented all but one of the 70 reinstatement criteria imposed on them by the IPC in July 2016: acknowledging and accepting the findings of the McLaren Report.
Notwithstanding this failure by the RPC, the CCES acknowledges the IPC’s decision to reinstate them conditionally. “While we remain quite concerned with the RPC’s refusal to take responsibility for its actions as outlined in the McLaren Report, we understand the current reality that the World Anti-Doping Agency and the International Olympic Committee have moved on and this leaves little choice for the IPC in this respect,” said Paul Melia. “Unfortunately, this ongoing refusal to satisfy all criteria does not create trust and confidence in Russia going forward.”
The CCES commends the IPC for its strong actions in imposing and maintaining its sanction of the RPC over the last 29 months. The conditional reinstatement also continues to place responsibilities on the RPC, which should assure clean athletes of the IPC’s ongoing efforts to monitor the RPC. The IPC’s overall management of this situation has demonstrated to the clean Paralympic athletes of the world that they can have trust in the IPC’s anti-doping efforts and its commitment to clean sport.