Russia hailed an "objective" decision by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Sunday not to ban its entire team from next month's Rio Games over revelations of state-run doping. He added later in televised comments that he was convinced that the "majority" of the Russian team would meet strict criteria to compete. "It is a specific challenge for our sportsmen but I am absolutely sure that the majority of the Russian team will meet the criteria." The IOC on Sunday ordered individual sports federations to decide whether Russian competitors should take part in the Rio Games after failing to agree on a complete ban. "As far as the criteria announced for the Russian team on the eve of the Olympic Games they are of course very tough," Mutko said.

Source: Standard Digital July 24, 2016 16:18 UTC