Six Russian Weightlifters Banned For Doping - Federation

Geneva, Oct 8 (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Oct, 2020 ) :Six Russian weightlifters were on Thursday handed doping bans of up to eight years, the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) announced.

The group includes Dmitry Lapikov, bronze medallist at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, 2009 world silver medallist and 2011 European champion.

The 38-year-old received the heaviest sanction, a competition ban until August, 2026.

Maksim Sheiko, European silver medallist in 2012 and 2013, was banned for six years, with Ruslan Albegov (bronze medallist at London 2012 and a two-time world champion), Egor Klimonov, Yuliya Konovalova, and Tima Turieva all receiving four year bans.

The punishments were based on evidence of cheating obtained by the World Anti-Doping Agency's investigation of samples taken from the Moscow laboratory at the centre of the Russian doping scandal.

Eight other cases "are currently pending", the IWF said, adding three other weightlifters - Aleksey Emelyanenko, Arsen Boraganov and Feliks Khalibekov - had been provisionally suspended on doping charges.

IWF acting president Ursula Papandrea said: "The decisions are proof that the anti-doping system has become significantly stronger in recent years, notably thanks to WADA's powers to investigate.

"The IWF will continue to play its part alongside the ITA (International Testing Agency) and others in doing all it can to protect clean weightlifters and promote clean weightlifting."