Russia is banned from the Winter Olympics by IOC

The International Olympic Committee has banned Russia from the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, TASS reports. The country’s government officials are forbidden to attend. Russian flag can not not be displayed at the opening ceremony, and the anthem will not be played. This decision was called  "offensive and insulting" by the president of Russian Skating Union Aleksandr Gorshkov, "it will harm the Olympic movement," he has stated. 

The IOC's Executive Committee announced in the statement issued in Lausanne, Switzerland on December 5th, that it is barring Russia's National Olympic committee from the following games. This penalty is unprecedented in Olympic history.

Selected Russian athletes with doping-free background could still compete under a neutral Olympic flag, as an “Olympic Athlete of Russia”. As we reported earlier,  in September WADA has cleared 95 Russian Athletes, mentioned in notorious McLaren Investigation Report. 

The IOC also decided to suspend Russian Olympic Committee president Alexander Zhukov as an IOC member, while Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko, Sports Minister at the time of the Sochi Games, was also banned from any future participation at the Olympics.

It is worth mentioning, that medals earned by Russian athletes in Sochi were taken away on November 10. Hence, the Russian team has lost the first place in the team event.

Vladimir Putin called plans of Russian athletes competing under neutral flag "degrading." 

Russkiy Mir