Four-time Olympic champion Alexander Tikhonov commented on the official cancellation of the results of biathlete Olga Zaitseva by the International Biathlon Union (IBU). His words are quoted by Sport24.
“Let the person live in peace. I understand the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), everything else. And why is the IBU raising all this? And I know why – only Russophobes have gathered there today, ”Tikhonov said. He stressed that he was waiting for the next congress to come to it and solve the problem.
The cancellation of Zaitseva’s results after the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi affected the final distribution of places in the overall standings of the 2013/2014 World Cup. Finnish biathlete Kaisa Makarainen, who took first place, dropped one line down and lost to Norwegian Tara Berger. The IBU has promised to make a fair decision on the redistribution of awards and prize money.
On October 13, the IBU canceled the results of biathlete Zaitseva in the relay at the Sochi Olympic Games. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) officially redistributed the awards and deprived Zaitseva of the silver medal. According to the updated protocols, the second place went to the Norwegian team.
In the summer of 2020, the German edition of Der Spiegel reported on the discovery of male DNA in the doping test of a Russian woman from October 2014. The forensic medical examination allegedly established that it was the DNA of Zaitseva’s husband.
At the end of 2017, Zaitseva and two other Russian biathletes Yana Romanova and Olga Vilukhina were disqualified for life on charges of violating anti-doping rules. It was then that the athletes took away the silver won at the 2014 Games in the relay.
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