MOSCOW (Sputnik) – It would be "absurd" to allow athletes who have previously been suspended for doping use, such as Yulia Stepanova, to compete in the 2016 Olympics, while banning Russian athletes who have always been clean, Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said Monday.
"This would be absurd. Stepanova, who was caught using doping and suspended, and who only started cooperating with them [WADA] after this, is supposed to go to the Olympics, while Russian athletes who have received no remarks for decades cannot. What sort of standard is this?" Mutko told R-Sport.