The Russian Olympic Committee, also known as the ROC, is an organization formed to represent Russian athletes in the Summer and Winter Olympics. In the 2014 Olympics, Russian athletes were caught in the middle of a large-scale doping scandal. Because of this, Russian athletes represent the ROC rather than the Russian flag when performing. Despite its purpose, many people have long believed that the ROC has failed at stopping Russian athletes from getting away with steroid usage and believe that the ROC is almost pointless.
First, there’s no difference between competing under the ROC and competing under the Russian flag. If a Russian athlete competes under the ROC, they’re still Russian. Russia can still claim that they have the best athletes in a respective field. The current Winter Olympic games are a prime example of that. Russia can currently claim that they have the best figure skaters in the world with their gold medal winning performance. If Russian athletes aren’t going to be completely banned, Russia could still claim that their athletes are the best in the world. There’s no real punishment for being caught in a doping scandal, as their athletes are still able to compete.
Second, drug testing is extremely corrupt as it is. Russian athletes are tested by the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RADA) up until they get to the location where the Olympics take place. From there, they’re usually tested by the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency). Russian athletes are, largely, being tested by other Russians. Russian drug testers can very easily turn a blind eye to any positive tests, allowing Russia to get away with enhancing their athletes. By the time they get to Beijing, or wherever the Olympics are held in the future, they wouldn’t need to use steroids anymore. They would have already reaped the benefits of their steroid usage. Russian gold medalist Kamila Valieva even tested positive as the games were going on. The flawed nature of WADA and RADA testing makes the ROC, who’s entire point is to stop Russian athletes from doping, completely pointless.
The Russian Olympic Committee, while having good intentions, doesn’t do anything to clean the sports up. Russian athletes are still testing positive for steroids, and they haven’t been punished for previous doping cases. If a commission can’t uphold the rules that they put in place, their entire purpose is useless. With Russia’s suspension ending in December, there’s no reason to keep the ROC around for any longer than we need, and it should be disbanded after Russia’s “suspension” is up.
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