Sporting ban a result of 'anti-Russian hysteria', says PM Medvedev

Russia banned from Olympic Games and World Cup for four years over doping

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev

Dmitry Astakhov / SPUTNIK / AFP: Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Monday that a four-year doping ban against the country was the result of “anti-Russian hysteria” and should be appealed.

“This is the continuation of this anti-Russian hysteria that has already become chronic,” Medvedev was quoted as saying by local news agencies.

The World Anti-Doping Agency’s unanimous decision, if upheld, would exclude Russia from the 2020 Olympics, and the Winter Games and World Cup in 2022.

WADA agreed unanimously on Monday to banish Russia from international sports — including next summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo — for four years.

AFP