Over the past few years, we have become accustomed to the fact that something is constantly being taken away from Russian sports: the flag and anthem, major tournaments, medals. And therefore, the news that the American swimmer was caught doping, in connection with which the result of his team was canceled and the gold medal passed to the Russian team, at first causes slight bewilderment. But it's all true!

Team USA member Matthew Willenbring tested positive during the 2017 Junior World Championships in Indianapolis. The athlete received four months of disqualification, and his results were invalidated. Since Matthew helped his team get gold in the combined relay, the entire American four could lose their medals. Gold in this case will go to the Russian athletes, who came second, losing 0.15 seconds to the Americans. True, the final decision has not yet been made. The Americans will certainly turn to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

swedish looking glass

Another piece of news, as if coming from a looking glass, sends us to Sweden. The hacker group Fancy Bears has published documents from the Swedish National Sports Association that testify to the concealment of positive doping tests of two Swedish athletes: skier Bjorn Sandström and track and field athlete Maria Nilsson. Terbutaline, which is an analogue of salbutamol, was found in the bodies of both athletes. The hackers also said that more than a hundred Swedish athletes use various therapeutic exceptions.

Hackers: positive doping tests of a skier and an athlete were hidden in Sweden

The head of the Anti-Doping Agency of Sweden, Matt Rickardsson, commenting on the data from Fancy Bears, stressed that he sees nothing wrong with the use of asthma drugs, and also blamed Russia for the leaks. “Personally, it is obvious to me that this hacker group is a poorly concealed propaganda of the Russian authorities. There are those in Russia who don't like the rest of the world."

Since Matthew helped his team get gold in the combined relay, the entire American four could lose their medals. Gold in this case will go to the Russian athletes, who came second, losing 0.15 seconds to the Americans.

Following the incident, the Swedish National Sports Association sent a statement to the police about the actions of the Fancy Bears group. We are talking about the disclosure of confidential information about therapeutic exceptions. About positive samples - silence.

Investigation on the side of Russia

Last week Russian rugby players had a holiday - they went to the World Cup, although they did it in a very unusual way. The fact is that in the qualifying group for the 2019 World Cup, the Russian team did not shine and was lower than the teams of Romania and Spain. However, it suddenly turned out that these two teams, as well as the Belgian team, which played in another group, violated the rules by playing illegally naturalized rugby players.

The International Federation, at the request of the Russian side, looked into the situation and ruled that the naturalized athletes really had no right to play. The national teams of Romania and Spain lost points for matches in which these rugby players were involved, and Russia soared up the standings, receiving a direct ticket to the World Cup. The tournament will be held in autumn 2019 in Japan, the Russians will play at this level for the second time.

Personally, it is obvious to me that this hacker group is a poorly concealed propaganda of the Russian authorities. There are those in Russia who don't like the rest of the world.

Unworthy hero

Tongan Pita Taufatofua won the hearts of thousands of fans around the world at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro and Pyeongchang. And he did this not with his outstanding results, but with his extravagant appearance - at the solemn ceremonies of both Olympics, he went in a national costume with a naked torso. And Pita has become a real embodiment of the Olympic spirit. At the Games in Brazil, he competed in taekwondo, and he liked the atmosphere of the competition so much that in two years he got on skis and managed to qualify for a tournament in South Korea. A skier from Polynesia - just think!

However, as it became known, Taufatofua was not supposed to go to the Olympics. At the Congress of the International Ski Federation, it was announced that the qualifying tournament in Colombia, which allowed the Tongans and some other skiers from exotic countries to go to the Games, was held in gross violation of the rules. During the race, the stopwatch was stopped for a while - this was confirmed by mobile shooting. FIS decided that you can’t bring back the past and didn’t punish either the athletes or even the organizers of the tournament, but decided to tighten control over such starts. So there will be less exotics on the track from now on.

Record of the Russian hero

Positive news came from the Russian hero. The famous powerlifter Mikhail Koklyaev last week managed to enter his name in the Russian Book of Records by moving the Volgar floating crane with a lifting capacity of 6.5 thousand tons. The strong man planned to move the ship by 10 meters, but it turned out only by 22 centimeters. One way or another, the record in Astrakhan was fixed. It is curious that during the training, Koklyaev moved the crane several meters. But before that, the Russians had not been able to cope with this.

dangerous cycling

What dangerous thing can happen to a traffic controller on a road bike track? Oddly enough, he can be crushed. No, not cyclists, who absolutely do not need falls and blockages, but service cars. Last week, during the Tour of Yorkshire race, the car of the Astana team, led by sports director Lars Mikaelson, following the peloton, almost knocked down the traffic controller - the man barely managed to jump to the side and get out from under the wheels of the other team's car.

At the Congress of the International Ski Federation, it was announced that the qualifying tournament in Colombia, which allowed the Tongans and some other skiers from exotic countries to go to the Games, was held in gross violation of the rules.

The incident did not go unnoticed and unpunished. The Dane fully admitted his guilt and helped to investigate the situation. As a result of the investigation, the former cyclist was fined five thousand Swiss francs and suspended from work on the track for 50 days.

How the US team got caught doping

"Match TV" - about the main doping scandal this fall.

What happened?

The Fancy Bears' hacker group has obtained access to World Anti-Doping Agency documents that show that several top American athletes have taken illegal drugs for many years, including on the eve of the Rio Olympics. Serena and Venus Williams, Simone Biles and Elena Delle Donne are among those who, according to Fancy Bears', were covered by WADA specialists. At the same time, the documents contain an important caveat: illegal drugs were used for therapeutic purposes.

What documents were released by the hackers?

We are talking about the ADAMS database. This is a special program for collecting and storing data. It was created specifically for WADA. All athletes included in the international testing pool are required to register in it. Each of them has his own profile, which contains information about his whereabouts, passed doping tests and their results, as well as permission for the therapeutic use of certain drugs. Until now, access to this data has been limited to athletes and their agents, national anti-doping organizations, national sports federations, major competition organizers, WADA and WADA-accredited laboratories.

Thanks to Fancy Bears', this circle has expanded significantly. So, in the public domain there was information that Serena Williams used illegal oxycodone, hydromorphone, prednisone, prednisolone and methylprednisolone in 2010, 2014 and 2015. Her sister - Venus in the period from 2010 to 2013 received permission to receive prednisone, prednisolone, triamcinolone and formoterol. The diagnoses, due to which the athletes could receive permission from WADA, are not named. But it's no secret that Serena was being treated for a pulmonary embolism and Venus was battling Sjögren's syndrome.

As for the four-time Olympic champion in gymnastics Simone Biles, she passed a positive test for the psychostimulant methylphenidate. Also, traces of amphetamines were found in her samples from 2012 to 2014.

Has anyone confirmed the authenticity of these documents?

WADA does not hide the fact of hacking. Thus, the International Tennis Federation confirmed that the agency's specialists informed them that the data of athletes, including certificates authorizing the therapeutic use of drugs, were made public.

The authenticity of the documents was also confirmed in the Italian edition of La Repubblica.

The International Olympic Committee refuses to comment on the documents, but they assure that during the Olympic Games in Rio there were no complaints against these athletes.

Why were American athletes allowed to take illegal drugs?

If the substances required for treatment are doping and are prohibited under the anti-doping rules, the athlete may still be granted the right to use them. To do this, you need to prove that he is in danger of a serious deterioration in health without taking any illegal drug, and alternative treatments do not work. There is also a special procedure developed by WADA specialists. The Therapeutic Use Request is submitted to the relevant International Federation and is accompanied by documents and certificates from the attending physician. This must be done 21 days before the start of the competition.

The Therapeutic Use Exemption is granted for a specific drug, indicating the dosage and duration of its use. Upon receipt of test results from the laboratory, the Doping Control Service verifies whether the Prohibited Substance has actually been consumed in accordance with the Therapeutic Use Exemption Authorization. If the test reveals that there is an authorization for the Prohibited Substance found in the sample, the result will be considered negative.

Will the Williams sisters and Simone Biles be stripped of their awards?

Among the documents that got into the network, there are certificates authorizing the therapeutic use of drugs. And this means that the Williams sisters, Simone Biles, and any other athlete whose data has become publicly available, it is enough to confirm the authenticity of medical reports in order to remove all suspicions of intentional doping. And, therefore, to keep all their medals and titles.

Who are the Fancy Bears?

The official statement posted on the group's website states that Fancy Bears' is an international team of hackers. “We are ready to fight for clean and fair sport. And we want to tell you how the Rio Olympic medals were won,” the activists say.

But sport is not the team's only passion. According to The Washington Post, hackers from the group hacked into the computer network of the headquarters of the US Democratic Party in April and gained access to research about Donald Trump. American journalists also cite some sources in the White House who claim that the Fancy Bears' activists are closely connected with the Russian special services.

Will the Fancu Bears' group continue their investigation?

The US team is the first of those that the group's activists are going to talk about. They explain their choice by the fact that the American team took first place in the unofficial medal standings in Rio. But the main goal of the project is the fight against fraud in sports.

“We are launching the #OpOlympics campaign. The American team is just the beginning. A little later, we will disclose information about other Olympic teams. A little patience - and you will find out the names of all the famous athletes who have taken doping, ”the group says in an official statement.

A photo: Getty Images, globallookpress.com

American athletes have taken doping and are not ashamed of it. Gymnast Simone Biles said just that: don't be ashamed! It turned out that both Biles and the Williams sisters were taking illegal drugs. It would seem that it's time to reconsider the idea of ​​the purity of American sports. But the anger of the International Olympic Committee, as well as the International Tennis Federation, was caused only by the fact that such information was released at all.

"!" - this is how American athlete Simone Biles reacted to the doping scandal so simply. It turns out that since childhood, she suffers from a small ailment - attention deficit and hyperreactivity.

"I've had ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) since I was a child and I've been on medication for it. I've always been in favor of clean sports, following all the rules and will continue to do so, as fair play is essential for sports and it's very important to me," Simone Biles said.

In many countries of the world, this disease is considered a myth at all, but in the USA such a diagnosis is made when a person is too impulsive and cannot concentrate. However, this was not noticeable on the carpet: well-adjusted movements, clear lines. Now it turns out that this is due to methylphenidate, simply put, a psychostimulant. It was found in Biles' blood on August 11 during the Rio Olympics. And at the same time they were allowed to compete. The result - a gold medal in the individual all-around. A couple of days later again positive samples, no reaction from WADA and another gold. As a result, Biles brought home four medals of the highest standard. And this despite the fact that according to the rules of the anti-doping agency, methylphenidate is prohibited. But, apparently, not for an American.

"The athletes did nothing wrong... In each of the situations, the athletes did everything right and followed the basic rules in obtaining permission to use the necessary medications," the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) said.

They took hormones. The eldest - a five-time winner of Wimbledon - said that she complied with all the rules established by the World Anti-Doping Agency, and received permission to use drugs on an individual basis. But the hackers turned out to be extreme in this story.

Fancy Bear's actions were - precisely - condemned by both the Williams sisters and US Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tigert. By the way, he most actively called for the removal of the Russian team from the Olympics.

Gratitude hackers received only from the star of the American basketball team Elena Delle Donn, and even then in a sarcastic form.

“I want to thank the hackers for notifying the whole world that I am legally taking the medicine that is prescribed for me in accordance with the diagnosis, and for which WADA made an exception for me. Thank you guys,” the athlete said.

It turned out that on August 20, before the match in Rio, she took a little amphetamine. It increases mental and physical performance, a person becomes more resilient. As a result, the Americans had gold in their pockets. It turned out that the anti-doping agency itself gave the go-ahead for the stimulant back in 2014 and immediately for 4 years. The main thing is not to deviate from the permitted dosage - 20 milligrams twice a day.

It turns out such double standards: Americans can do everything that is on the prohibited lists, and the Russian team in its entirety was almost removed from the Games for taking meldonium, although earlier the drug was not considered doping at all. Not to mention our Paralympic athletes, who were not allowed to the current Games.

Now WADA will have to explain. This demand was made by the Bloomberg agency. Why are some American athletes allowed to use illegal drugs? American Forbes went further: it calls for an immediate reform of the anti-doping agency. Or maybe even replace it with a new organization.

Quadruple Olympic champion gymnast Simone Biles tweeted that she had attention deficit disorder and had been on medication since she was a child.

The whole world is following the development of the scandal with the publication of documents by the hackers of the Fancy Bears group of the World Anti-Doping Agency, from which it follows that for many years American athletes took doping with the permission of WADA. At the same time, everything seemed to be legal. But if some time ago, after the appearance of reports about the supposedly “state program” of doping in Russia, the whole world rushed to all the athletes of our country with accusations, then the first reaction to the “doping” of American athletes was “And everything was legal!”.

DOPING? NO, EVERYTHING IS LEGAL!

So, the American basketball player Elena Delle Donn commented on the mention of herself in the documents on her Instagram. According to the hackers, in August 2016, she passed a positive amphetamine test. Having won, at the same time, the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro:

I would like to thank the hackers for posting the information to the world that I am legally taking the drugs that are prescribed for me to treat the disease, and for which WADA has made an exception, - said the basketball player.

Four-time Olympic champion Simone Biles tweeted:

I have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and have been on medication since childhood. Please understand, I believe in clean sport. I have always followed the anti-doping rules and will continue to do so because integrity is essential in sport and is very important to me.

At the same time, the head of the American Anti-Doping Agency, Travis Tygart, immediately began to defend this version:

It is inconceivable that such confidential data becomes known to everyone. It looks like the athletes are not doing something wrong and are breaking the law. But it's not. All permits were obtained correctly and were approved by the IOC and USADA. This is mean to innocent athletes.

Elena Delle Donne, according to the hackers, tested positive for amphetamines in August 2016. Photo: REUTERS

SISTER WILLIAMS DISAPPOINTED BY LEAK

American Venus Williams, the sister of the former world number one, made a statement on Twitter, saying that she was upset about the leak:

Disappointed that my personal medical data fell into the hands of hackers and was published without my consent. I followed the anti-doping rules of tennis when I applied for and received exceptions for therapeutic use of drugs. To do this, it was necessary to go through a strict procedure. Exceptions were reviewed by an anonymous independent panel of physicians and approved for legitimate medical reasons. I am one of the strongest believers in maintaining the highest level of integrity in sports. I have always followed the directives of WADA, USADA, ITF and the anti-doping program in tennis with the utmost discipline.

At the same time, after this leak, many questions arose for both American athletes and WADA itself. Instead of revealing all the details of the use of such strong substances as, for example, amphetamines or prednisolone, they brushed it off, citing "medical secrecy." Moreover, they brought forward a number of accusations against Russia. Allegedly, all this will jeopardize the restoration of confidence in Russian sports.

However, the press secretary of the President of Russia, Dmitry Peskov, said that there could be no question of any involvement of our country in this scandal:

It can be unequivocally said that there can be no question of any involvement of official Moscow, the government, or any Russian services in such actions. This is completely out of the question. Such unfounded accusations - they do not adorn any organization if they are not backed up by something significant. I don’t know if those who made such statements have any significant arguments,” Peskov said in an interview with TASS.

© Provided by: Komsomolskaya Pravda

American Venus Williams made a statement on her Twitter, saying that she was upset about the leak. Photo: REUTERS

WADA TO ANSWER A LOT OF QUESTIONS

However, after this scandal, an article appeared on the Bloomberg website that leads to the idea that WADA will now have to reveal all the details of the use of prohibited substances by American athletes to remove all suspicions:

In order to remove suspicion, WADA should disclose its accepted procedures for issuing authorizations for the use of prohibited substances for medical purposes. As frustrating as it may be, the organization must explain - with the permission of the athletes or without naming names - why it has authorized the use of specific prohibited substances.

However, the hacker group Fancy Bears said yesterday that the appearance of documents that relate to gymnast Simone Biles, tennis players Serena and Venus Williams and basketball player Delle Donne is only the first part of the documents.

Soon we should expect the appearance of new "revelations" not only of athletes from the United States, but also from other countries

The champion, who received four gold medals at the Rio Olympics, allegedly took the psychostimulant methylphenidate and amphetamines as prescribed by a doctor. The computer pirates, the same ones who hacked into Clinton's personal emails, claim to have hijacked the anti-doping agency's servers and checked the data of American medal-winning athletes from the last Olympics.

Some of the top athletes on the American team who competed in the recent Rio Olympics were under the influence of doping substances during the competition. A team of alleged Russian hackers who hacked into the server of WADA, the World Anti-Doping Agency, reports this, attaching the relevant documents. Hackers publish a number of secret documents containing data on the use of illegal drugs by athletes. The list includes American sports stars, including the Williams sisters and champion gymnastics Simone Biles. “After analyzing the database,” the hackers write, attaching thousands of documents marked “Confidential” (secret) “we came to the conclusion that dozens of athletes had positive doping tests both the day before and during the games. Olympic medalists in Rio regularly took illegal drugs, the use of which was justified by therapeutic purposes. In other words, they received a doping permit.”

Context

Mutko: McLaren report is falsified

30.08.2016

Norway accused of doping

Aftenposten 28.08.2016

Yulia Efimova: It was monstrous

TV 2 Norge 22.08.2016
One of the most egregious publicized examples of illicit drug use is Simone Biles, a four-gold medal winner in gymnastics who, according to published documents, took the psychostimulant methylphenidate and prescription amphetamines. WADA tests repeatedly showed traces of these drugs, even during competition, but no positive test results were ever reported because the athlete had the proper TUE authorized by the international federation.

“If the authenticity of the documents is confirmed,” an authoritative source explains to our publication, “no offenses will be recorded. Of course, it is at least surprising that an athlete of this level participated in the Olympic competitions under the influence of drugs prescribed as a rule for narcoleptics.

According to the stolen documents, American basketball star Elena Delle Donne also tested positive for amphetamines. The Russian hackers who blitzed the WADA database are part of the same team that released the contents of Hillary Clinton's email and hacked into the World Anti-Doping Agency database a few months ago. Repubblica sources confirm the authenticity of most of the published documents.