Russian Investigators Want to Question German Journalist Over Doping Documentary

12:43 GMT, 15 May 2018

Hajo Seppelt, German journalist working for the ARD broadcaster, produced several documentaries on doping abuse in Russia. Following the release of the first film, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) launched an investigation into the allegations of doping abuse in Russian sports.

Sputnik

The Russian Investigative Committee wants to question German journalist Hajo Seppelt in the case of World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) informant Grigory Rodchenkov, the committee’s spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko said on Tuesday.

"The Russian Investigative Committee will take measures to question German journalist Hajo Seppelt regarding the criminal case against former acting director of the Anti-Doping Center over the abuse of power and elimination of athletes' doping samples," the spokeswoman told reporters.

She noted that Russian investigators were seeking to question the journalist regarding the information which he learned when making a documentary about the alleged doping violations of Russian athletes.

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11 May 2018, 06:21 GMT

Earlier in the day, the German Foreign Ministry confirmed that Seppelt had been granted a visa to work at this summer's FIFA World Cup in Russia. On Friday, the German TV channel ARD reported that Russia had denied Seppelt the visa required for attending the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which the broadcaster said was "an unprecedented interference in press freedom in terms of coverage of major events, such as the World Cup."

Seppelt is an investigative journalist who is famous for his anti-doping research. He is the author of a number of documentaries, aired on the ARD channel on doping abuse in Russia. Following the release of Seppelt's first film, the WADA launched an investigation into the allegations of doping abuse in Russian sports. In November 2015, WADA's Independent Commission issued a report accusing Russia of numerous breaches of global anti-doping regulations.