The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has registered 22 cases from Russian athletes against their lifetime Olympic bans and the annulment of their records at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
The cases were received just one day after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) disqualified Russia from the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, AP reports.
The IOC took the decision to ban Russia from sending a team to the Games, but says it will permit Russian athletes who have never been found guilty of doping - and have undergone stricter doping tests since April - to compete as independent athletes under a neutral flag.
The 22 athletes, which includes Sochi gold medalist Alexander Zubkov, Alexander Legkov and Aleksandr Tretyakov, are understood to have requested that the CAS make a decision on their cases before the Pyeongchang Games open on February 9.
Comment: The IOC says that it is "politically neutral". What a farce. It's hard to know what's worse: making such an
obviously political decision and lying about it, or being so self-deluded that you think you are neutral while being a total tool for a political witch hunt. Probably the vast majority of Russian athletes have done nothing wrong - and Russia has been sure to be squeaky clean since the last Olympics, given the public pressure on them. Yet the IOC has collectively punished all Russian athletes. Just put yourself in a Russian athlete's shoes and imagine how this feels: like living in a Kafkaesque dystopian nightmare.
World champion figure skater
Evgenia Medvedeva, who attended the IOC board meeting on Tuesday, expressed her own reaction to the ban:
"I cannot accept the option that I would compete in the Olympic Games without the Russian flag as a neutral athlete," Medvedeva said. "I am proud of my country, it is a great honor for me to represent it at the Games. It gives strength and inspires me during the performances."
The two-time world champion, who hasn't lost since November 2015 and is widely considered as number one contender to clinch the coveted Olympic title in the women's individual skating, said that by banning the Russian flag, the IOC defies the Olympic Charter principle which grants equal opportunities to all competitors.
"If I perform without a national flag, I will not be able to compete in the team. At the same time, my other rivals will have this opportunity. The Olympic Charter states that all athletes should have equal opportunities. And in this case there can be no question of equality."
Medvedeva also said the chance to compete in PyeongChang may be her only opportunity to win Olympic gold, as she is uncertain about her participation in the next Winter Games four years from now.
"In 2014, I was 14 years old. I have not even entered the adult national team of my country. For me personally, PyeongChang should be the first chance to plunge into the unique atmosphere of the Olympic Games. I do not understand why I and my Russian teammates can lose this chance."
Medvedeva also insisted she tried to remain uninvolved in the ongoing doping row surrounding Russia. "I have until the last moment tried not to pay attention to the negative news related to Russian sports. I thought that we, the 'clean' Russian athletes, had nothing to worry about. If someone really committed anti-doping rule violations, we certainly do not have anything to do with this," she said.
Following the IOC's announcement to suspend Russia's Olympic membership, Medvedeva stated it remains unclear whether she will take part in the Olympic figure skating tournament in South Korea.
"Will I go to the Olympics? It will be discussed later. It's too early to ask such questions. Deep inside I feel I did everything I could. I was immensely happy to be here and to deliver my short speech [to the IOC]. I do hope that it produced the desired effect.
"I want to believe that Russia will turn this [doping] story into something positive. I know I'm supported by fans from around the world and I promise I will not give up and will continue working at full strength."
You see, that's where Mevedeva was wrong. This has nothing to do with going after "dirty" athletes. It only matters that you're Russian.
Russian Deputy PM Vitaly Mutko has offered to fall on his sword and
quit if it will do any good. He received a lifetime Olympic ban on Tuesday. That's unlikely. The monsters that are after Russia cannot be appeased. They simply want blood.
See:
The US-Inspired Olympic Ban on Russia: Another Pyrrhic Victory for the Ailing Empire of Chaos
Comment: The timing is interesting considering the upcoming Russian elections and another great example of mainstream media duplicity. For months we hear about these "Kremlin" trolls and now these Western media outlets are receiving massive budgets to continue spreading propaganda and fake news. See also: