December 16, 2019 Doping / Fraud / Olympics / Soccer

Russia Banned From 2020 and 2022 Olympics, 2022 World Cup for Doping Violations

Russia has been banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) from participating in or hosting various sporting events, including the 2020 Olympics and 2022 World Cup.

As we reported earlier, the Russian track-and-field team was banned from the 2016 Summer Olympics by the International Association of Athletics Federations. This ban was a result of a systematic doping cover-up and the lack of compliance from the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA). The Russian Olympic team was later banned from the 2018 Winter Olympics due to extensive doping …

July 7, 2016 Olympics

Russian Whistleblower is “Exceptionally Eligible” for Competition

Amid Russia’s widespread doping scandal and in the face of the Russian athletes ban, one particular athlete received a reprieve. Yuliya Stepanova, a Russian track athlete, will be allowed to run as a “neutral athlete” in the European Championships and potentially compete in the 2016 Olympics.

Stepanova and her husband, Vitaly, exposed the scale of the Russian team’s systemic doping scheme. Vitaly worked as an official in the Russian Anti-Doping Agency. In 2011, Stepanova was banned from international competition following abnormalities in her “biological …

June 21, 2016 Doping

Russian Track & Field Team Banned from Rio Olympics in Unprecedented Decision

In an unprecedented decision, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) announced on Friday, June 17, 2016, that Russia and the Russian Athletics Federation has failed to show enough progress to warrant lifting the November 2015 provisional doping scandal suspension. Although the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will make the final call about Russian’s participation in the Rio Olympics, the decision bars the team from competition.

The track-and-field team was provisionally banned from competition following a 2015 report from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). WADA’s report …

June 13, 2016 Litigation / Olympics / Sponsorships

Nike Successfully, but Temporarily, Prevents Rising Track Star From Running in Rival’s Gear

On June 7, 2016 an Oregon federal court granted Nike’s request for a temporary restraining order which would prevent track star Boris Berian from wearing or endorsing any of Nike’s competitors for a short period of time. The order handed down on Tuesday will keep Berian out of New Balance products until at least June 21, when a more permanent solution to the contract dispute is handed down.

Berian is the 800-meter world indoor champion and has become one of the faces of middle distance …

June 12, 2016 Olympics / Soccer

US Women’s Soccer Denied Right to Strike at 2016 Olympics in Brazil

The women’s national soccer team lost its match against the U.S. Soccer Federation on June 3, 2016. An Illinois federal district court in Chicago ruled the U.S. Women’s Soccer players cannot go on strike prior to the Olympics. The Federation initiated the suit after the players’ union lawyer denied the validity of the “no strike, no lockout” provision after the collective bargaining agreement was extended through 2016. The women’s team alleges that its players are paid less than the players on the men’s national team.…