Russia banned from major sporting events for four years by anti-doping authorities
by Stephen McNeiceRussia has been banned from competing at major international sporting events for the next four years by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
It means there will be no Russian team at the Olympics in Tokyo next year, or the 2022 football World Cup in Qatar.
However, the country does have the right to appeal the decision.
Anti-doping authorities made the "strong and unequivocal" decision on the ban during a meeting of the WADA board in Switzerland today.
Officials say Russia has been punished for altering data linked to positive doping tests.
WADA's executive committee 'unanimously endorsed' the recommendation of a recent report on the controversy.
In the report detailed last month, experts found that Moscow's data on doping was "neither complete nor fully authentic".
They concluded there was “an extremely serious case of non-compliance with the requirement to provide an authentic copy of the Moscow data, with several aggravating features”.
Announcing today's decision, WADA President Craig Reedie said: "Russia was afforded every opportunity to get its house in order and re-join the global anti-doping community for the good of its athletes and of the integrity of sport, but it chose instead to continue in its stance of deception and denial.
"As a result, the WADA ExCo has responded in the strongest possible terms, while protecting the rights of Russian athletes that can prove that they were not involved and did not benefit from these fraudulent acts."
Russian athletes will be able to participate in major sporting events if they are "able to demonstrate that they are not implicated in any way".
However, the Russian flag will not be allowed be flown at any of the events over the next four years.
Any appeal on the ban will be considered by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).