Sochi’s bid for the 2014 Winter Olympic Games gained momentum following a report this week by leaders of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) saying they were satisfied that progress has been made in Russia’s anti-doping services.
Following an on-site inspection of the facilities in Moscow, Nikolay Durmanov, head of the Anti-Doping Inspection of the Russian Olympic Committee said, “WADA leaders expressed confidence in Russia’s progress and continue to maintain a close relationship with Russian Anti-Doping services. Their only request was to increase the minimum number of tests performed to be on a par with the top anti-doping laboratories in the world”.
Dmitry Chernyshenko, CEO of Sochi 2014 said, “the Sochi 2014 bid is eager to promote a clear position concerning doping maintaining Russia’s position at the forefront in protecting athlete’s health and promoting clean competitions. Our proposal will emphasize measures to fight against doping and respect of the highest standards recommended by WADA. Russia’s world renown for sporting excellence and the quality of its athletes, especially in Winter Sports, continues to drive our commitment. Hosting the 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Sochi would give further impetus to the reinforcement of anti-doping regulations in Russia”.
