LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) – Olympic sports leaders have begun debating how to improve a global anti-doping system amid the fallout of a Russian state-backed cheating scandal.
A closed-doors meeting chaired by IOC President Thomas Bach will discuss the role of the World Anti-Doping Agency, which angered many Olympic officials by calling for Russia to be banned from the Rio de Janeiro Games.
Olympic leaders have long favored taking control of drug testing from sports federations, though WADA’s role in a newly independent system has been questioned since it appointed two investigations that detailed Russian doping and cover-ups.
Delegates included the International Paralympic Committee’s president, Philip Craven, who excluded Russia from the Paralympic Games in Rio.
Craven says ahead of the expected four-hour session: “Sport has to come together and I think it will.”