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in Pony-Like Screenshots Sun Nov 10, 2019 9:01 am
by chenwen121314 • 609 Posts

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Russia will walk into the Rio Summer Games opening ceremonies Friday, a tad depleted but still nearly 300 strong, in its accustomed place: late in alphabetical order and high in geopolitical influence. Fake Jerseys Outlet .Russian whistleblowers Yuliya and Vitaly Stepanov will watch from their temporary home in the United States.That split-screen visual has felt preordained for months now. It is the embodiment of the near-complete undermining of an 18-year effort to harmonize performance-enhancing drug regulations across borders and continents.The evidence of state-sponsored doping across all Russian sport gathered in two separate World Anti-Doping Agency investigations over the last nine months is compelling and detailed. While time constraints kept the latest chapter from being exhaustive, it should have been enough to sideline the delegation.The entire Russian team in Rio represents an exception to the rules hammered out since WADA was born. Or rather, a rewriting of the rules that has taken place in a matter of weeks. The solution to the eligibility question was jammed through an ad hoc quasi-legal pipeline created for one purpose: to make sure as many Russian athletes as possible received the benefit of the doubt, a benefit many thought should be forfeited.International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach spoke of justice and individual rights at a packed media briefing Thursday. He says he has a clean conscience. For me, the guiding principle was, after this decision, you have to be able to look into the eyes of all the athletes, he said. During my visits to the Olympic Village, I have been looking into the eyes of many athletes.If thats the case, its hard to imagine he didnt see a lot of disappointment staring back.So much information, so little time to process it. Such a shame. We must protect the innocent. That has been the drumbeat from IOC officials up to and including Bach.The absurdly conflicted entities responsible for safeguarding clean sport shielded their eyes instead of pulling out binoculars, starting in 2010 when Russian Anti-Doping Agency employee Vitaly Stepanov began corresponding with WADA. Because WADA -- twice -- didnt act until its hand was forced by investigative journalists. Because it was in the IOC leaderships interest to make that timeframe as compressed as possible, to avoid a major doping scandal on the eve of the Rio Games.They almost succeeded.The normally genteel world of Olympic governance has seen an extraordinary bloodletting over the past few days. The IOC has turned on WADA, correctly accusing the agency it created of foot-dragging, while conveniently neglecting the fact that their interests are deeply intertwined.WADAs former chief investigator, former U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency special agent Jack Robertson, eviscerated WADA for a lack of interest in pursuing the truth, and similarly castigated the IOC for ignoring it when it emerged.The action the IOC took has forever set a bar for how the most outrageous doping and cover up and corruption possible will be treated in the future, Robertson told ProPublicas David Epstein. Those involved in running sport are former athletes, so somehow I figured that they would have honor and integrity. But the people in charge are basically raping their sports and the system for self-interest.Completing the accusatory circle, Richard McLaren, the Canadian law professor who led a compressed but still informative probe that began in May at WADAs behest, Thursday accused the IOC of misrepresenting his findings.McLarens mandate was to probe the extent of Russian state involvement in doping beyond track and field -- an effort that the WADA Athlete Committee had asked for months before. His assignment came only after ex-Moscow lab director Grigory Rodchenkov revealed the creative, concerted sabotage of drug testing at the 2014 Sochi Games in an interview with the New York Times.McLaren made substantial progress in a short two months. He found a scratches and marks expert to prove that tamper-proof urine sample bottles used at the Sochi Games were not adult-proof. He detailed the steps taken to cover up positive tests, and showed that systemic doping had touched a wide range of Russian sports.His report prompted WADA to call for the exclusion of the entire Russian delegation. A coalition of national anti-doping organizations, including the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, also advocated a blanket ban.The IOCs Executive Board promptly abdicated responsibility and punted the dirty work of determining one-by-one which Russian athletes were clean to their respective international sport federations.McLaren, a veteran arbitrator who generally comes across as a measured academic rather than a firebrand, is deeply disturbed by that outcome.Look at what is there and what the data is and make a decision on that basis and dont turn it into what it isnt -- a doping results management investigation of specific athletes, McLaren told The Guardian.He also took issue with continued references to his report as allegations, a term Bach repeated Thursday.I wouldnt put anything in the report that I didnt have evidence of and wouldnt meet the criminal standard in any court around the world, McLaren said.Bach defended the process again Thursday with a rhetorical question: Can you hold any athlete responsible for the wrongdoing of his or her country? That misses the point. The athletes and national machinery are too intertwined at this point to separate with any fairness or logic. It defies belief that a government-sports-industrial complex would open its doping toolbox to some sports and not others, especially when that complex was succeeding at hoodwinking the world.Handing off to the international federations was specious from the start. Did anyone really expect individual sports fiefdoms to buck Russia when the IOC wouldnt? Or that fencing would defy the Russian oligarch who serves as its president? Judo made Russian president Vladimir Putin its honorary president, and swimming conferred its highest honor on him.It will be interesting to see how the Russian athletes are received Friday. However, their entrance will not be the most dramatic of the evening. That distinction will belong to the Refugee Olympic Team, a group of athletes the IOC granted special dispensation to compete.The Refugee Team is an example of the spectacular symbolism that sport can provide, and illustrates that the IOC can bend and shape the eligibility rules for its showcase event any way it wishes.Yuliya Stepanova could have been shown that same consideration by being allowed to run the 800-meter event in neutral colors. She is rusty and injured and not a medal threat. It would have been an easy gesture, a way to thank her and her husband for exposing corruption and becoming forced exiles.Instead, the IOC interviewed her by phone and twisted her words. Asked whether she would compete under the Russian flag, Stepanova said she would, but didnt think she would be welcome, given the level of hostility against her and her husband. The ensuing IOC statement portrayed her as unwilling.Since shes not here, we will be left to wonder what Thomas Bach would see if he looked into her eyes. Fake Baseball Jerseys . Despite the cost, effort and an improved steroid test, its possible that very few -- if any -- positives will be detected, Dr. Richard Budgett told The Associated Press in an interview. "We just dont know what the results from Torino will be," Budgett said. Fake Jerseys 2019 .Y. -- Bills receiver Stevie Johnson has a bone to pick with the NFL schedule maker. http://www.fakejersey.com/fake-ncaa-jerseys/ . The Redskins announced Monday that the quarterback who led the team to the Super Bowl championship in the 1987 season will serve as a personnel executive. HOUSTON -- At the end of a disappointing season, Mike Trout and the Los Angeles Angels are having a little fun this weekend in Houston.Kole Calhoun had a season-high three hits and two RBI, and the Angels scored nine runs in the final two innings to rally for the second straight game in a 10-4 victory over the Astros on Saturday night.It was the third straight victory in this series for the Angels, who scored six runs in the ninth inning on Friday night to win 10-6.Now that were out of it were trying to be spoilers, Trout said. Were trying to win every game we play. Were playing teams down the stretch that are in the playoff hunt still, especially these guys. We play them again at home and theyre still in it.It was another costly loss for the Astros, who fell to three games behind Baltimore for the second AL wild card.Weve hit another rough patch, manager A.J. Hinch said. The seasons not over. Were going to continue to bounce back and try to get us a win tomorrow.Albert Pujols, Mike Trout and C.J. Cron each added two RBI for Los Angeles.The Angels trailed by three entering the eighth before hitting three straight singles with one out to make it 4-2 and chase rookie Chris Devenski. Luke Gregerson (4-2) took over and was greeted by a soft liner from Trout, which dropped for an RBI single to get Los Angeles within one.A fifth straight single, this one by Pujols, sent home another run to tie it. A wild pitch left Trout at third, and he scored on Crons sacrifice fly to put Los Angeles on top.The biggest thing is when we have guys in scoring position we drive them in, Trout said. Were getting a chance to, when theres guys on base, to get some hits.The Angels tacked on five runs in an embarrassing ninth for the Astros. The last run in that inning scored when second baseman Jose Altuve made a bad throw for an error to reliever Pat Neshek, who was covering first base, and Neshek tripped over the base and fell face first to the dirt.George Springer had fouur hits and an RBI and for the Astros, who had won 11 straight over the Angels before this skid. Fake NFL Jerseys. Houston led by two in the seventh before an RBI triple by Springer. Yuli Gurriel followed with a run-scoring single to make it 4-1 before Los Angeles rallied once again.Houston starter Brad Peacock allowed one hit and one run while striking out a season-high seven in five innings.Jhoulys Chacin allowed four hits and two runs -- none earned -- in six innings in his third start since making four appearances out of the bullpen. Jose Valdez (2-3) allowed two runs in the seventh for the win.TRAINERS ROOMASTROS: Closer Ken Giles injured his right wrist when he was hit by a line drive during batting practice on Saturday. Trainers ran to the right-hander after he was hit and he remained on his knees on the field for a while before being carted off. X-rays were negative and the team called his injury a bruised right wrist. Giles picked up his fifth blown save this season on Friday night when he gave up six runs in the ninth inning.ANOTHER MILESTONEPujols hit his 602nd career double on Saturday to move past Barry Bonds for sole possession of 15th place on the career doubles list.Every time out he does something, whether he knocks a run in or gets an extra-base hit or home run, its fun to see just what the footnote is and who hes passing, manager Mike Scioscia said. Names are legendary every time he does something now. Its fun to watch.UP NEXTAngels: Rookie Daniel Wright (0-4, 7.48) looks for his first win Sunday. Wright allowed nine hits and five runs in 4 2/3 innings of a 5-4 loss to Texas in his last start.Astros: Rookie Joe Musgrove (3-4, 4.42) is scheduled to start for Houston. Musgrove didnt allow a hit until the sixth inning of his last start, yielding two hits and one run in 5 1/3 innings of a 2-1 win over Oakland. ' ' '

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