Russia stripped of bobsleigh world championships after doping scandal
The sport pulls out of the resort of Sochi after a number of athletes said they would not compete there.
Wednesday 14 December 2016 06:54, UK
Russia will no longer host next February's bobsleigh and skeleton world championships following the country's doping scandal.
The sport decided to pull out of the resort of Sochi, where the 2014 Winter Olympics took place, after a number of athletes said they would not compete there.
Among those who pushed for a new location were Olympic medallists Lizzy Yarnold of Great Britain, Americans Steven Holcomb, Matt Antoine and Elana Meyers Taylor, and Martins Dukurs of Latvia.
Latvia's national skeleton team said it would boycott the world championships if they were held in Russia, and Austria and South Korea were also considering such action.
Some competitors were concerned that the hosts could tamper with food and drink supplies which may result in them unknowingly taking a banned substance.
Last week a damning report by Canadian professor Richard McLaren claimed more than 1,000 Russian athletes in at least 30 sports were involved in a state-sponsored doping programme.
The report described how Russia "hijacked" sport in an "institutional conspiracy" to win by mass doping at the Sochi 2014 Games and London 2012 Olympics and other global competitions. Moscow denies the claims.
The Kremlin hit out at the move to take the championships away from Sochi, with government spokesman Dmitri Peskov saying it was a "political decision" that Russia "enormously regretted".
Russian sports minister Pavel Kolobkov expressed his surprise, saying: "There is an agreement for the organisation of these world championships that no one has terminated."
The sports governing body, the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF), said a new location would be chosen in the next few days.
A statement said: "The IBSF executive committee felt that during this difficult time it is prudent not to organise such an event in Russia."
It explained: "This decision was made for two primary reasons.
"First: to allow athletes and coaches from all nations to participate in a competition that focuses on sport rather than accusations and discussions - whether justified or not.
"Second: The Russian Bobsleigh Federation has put a great effort in the preparation of the World Championships. But the current climate would make it nearly impossible to appreciate the efforts of the organising committee to host a great event or the quality of the Sanki Sliding Centre as one of the best tracks in the world.
"Having stated that, the IBSF asks all members and athletes for fair play and respect, which also includes the assumption of innocence for any athlete, regardless of national affiliation, until proven guilty."