RUSSIA TASKFORCE REPORT TO COUNCIL MEETING OF 1 DECEMBER 2021
I am pleased to provide the following update to Council on behalf of the Russia Taskforce:
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As you know, last month the 53rd World Athletics Congress resolved that thesuspension of RusAF’s membership of World Athletics should continue until
Council decides that all of the conditions set by Council from time to time for thereinstatement of RusAF’s membership have been met.

Currently, RusAF is working to meet the milestones and KPIs set out in theReinstatement Plan that Council approved in March 2021. The Taskforce is inregular communication with RusAF Acting President Irina Privalova and hercolleagues to assess that work, and we also receive weekly reports from theinternational experts. Each month RusAF has provided a formal written report on
the progress made against the Reinstatement Plan, and the international experts
have provided their feedback on those reports. The Taskforce has also convened
periodic calls with the international experts to discuss those reports and toaddress any issues as they arise.

As I told Congress last month, based on these reports and this feedback, the viewof the Taskforce is one of guarded optimism. RusAF is making steady progress
towards meeting the conditions set for its reinstatement to membership of World
Athletics: the key milestones to date have been met, as well as the various key
performance indicators set out in the Reinstatement Plan. Furthermore, theinternational experts are of the view that these efforts reflect a new culture thatis genuinely looking to reject the doping practices of the past and to commit tocompeting clean moving forward. On the other hand, there are still people inRussian athletics who have not embraced this new culture, there is still muchwork for RusAF to do to ensure that those people do not prevail, and (as notedbelow) RusAF needs to ensure it exercises careful oversight to ensure that all antidoping requirements are properly complied with on the ground in Russia. Butoverall it is fair to say that the new RusAF leadership seems to have a genuine
commitment to lead this culture change and ensure it becomes deep-rooted in
Russian athletics.

RusAF has also kept up with another condition of reinstatement, namely timely
reimbursement of all of the reinstatement costs incurred by World Athletics. In
July RusAF was invoiced US$488,209 for the reinstatement costs incurred byWorld Athletics in the quarter ending 30 June 2021. RusAF paid that invoice infull. In October RusAF was invoiced US$325,962.05 for the reinstatement costs
incurred by World Athletics in the quarter ending 30 September 2021, andpayment of that invoice is expected shortly.
The Taskforce’s understanding is that both the Russian Ministry of Sport and theRussian Olympic Committee are supportive of RusAF’s efforts. The Russian Sports
Minister, Oleg Matytsin, has asked for a meeting with the World Athletics
President and myself to discuss the reinstatement process, and we are currently
trying to find a mutually convenient date for that meeting.

As I mentioned to Congress last month, the status of RUSADA (the Russian
national anti-doping organisation) remains an issue of concern. In December
2020, the CAS declared RUSADA non-compliant with the World Anti-Doping Codeand imposed a series of consequences and reinstatement conditions that have tobe met in order for RUSADA to be reinstated in December 2022. Those1

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reinstatement conditions include working with the AIU to investigate cases
impacted by the tampering with the testing data at the Moscow laboratory; andprocuring further testing data to enable the AIU to determine whether any otherathletes may have committed anti-doping rule violations. At present the AIU isencountering difficulties in obtaining some important data (electropherogramsand other records of the results of analysis of samples for EPO and/or relatedsubstances), and therefore at present it appears that those reinstatementconditions have not been met. Nor is it clear whether RUSADA is able to perform
its role as the independent Russian NADO effectively. Partly in response to thatconcern, RusAF has agreed to the AIU conducting extra testing of RusAF’s athletes,
at RusAF’s cost. However, the underlying issues with RUSADA remain. The
Taskforce will therefore consider whether to recommend that Council impose
further reinstatement conditions on RusAF that are designed to address theseissues. I will report back on this at the next Council meeting.

In the meantime, the Taskforce is working with RusAF and with the AIU to develop
a detailed series of measures that would apply after RusAF has been reinstated.
These measures are designed to give Council and the member federations ofWorld Athletics comfort that progress towards a genuine change in culture willcontinue in Russia after reinstatement, and there will be no backsliding. The
proposal is that the AIU will lead on policing these post-reinstatement measures.
The detail of the measures is currently being finalised, and I expect to be able topresent them to Council for its approval at its next meeting.

Finally, Council resolved in July that it would consider at this final meeting of theyear the conditions for maintaining the Authorised Neutral Athlete (ANA) process
in 2022, including in particular whether the ten ANA quota that Council imposedfor certain competitions in 2021 should be maintained or varied in 2022. The
Taskforce has therefore considered what recommendation it should make in thisregard. On the one hand, it considers that RusAF and its athletes should berewarded for the progress that has been made to date, in order to encourage
further and greater efforts. On the other hand, it was concerned to receive a reportfrom the Doping Review Board advising that in 2021 99 athletes had been granted
ANA status on condition that RusAF arrange for them to undergo 1 or 2 out-ofcompetition tests before the first competition specified in their application form,
but in five cases RusAF had failed to arrange those tests and therefore those fiveathletes competed without completing those tests. The report also noted thatRusAF did not appear to be investigating five active coaches who have had anumber of convicted dopers under their charge (as the World Athletics AntiDoping Rules require them to do). RusAF suggested in response that under
Russian law it is required to delegate such investigations to RUSADA.

The immediate concerns raised by the Doping Review Board have beenaddressed: (a) a mechanism will be put in place to ensure that in 2022 an ANA
athlete cannot enter any competition until RusAF has demonstrated that any
outstanding testing requirements for that athlete have been satisfied; and (b)investigations of the five coaches are being undertaken by RUSADA, but RusAF isrequired to ensure that the matter is followed up properly and that the AIU is kept
in the loop. The Taskforce is therefore willing to recommend an increase in theANA quota for 2022, but it also recommends that any future breach of the ANA
requirements should lead to an automatic 25% reduction in that quota.

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The Taskforce recommends that Council resolve as follows:
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The Authorised Neutral Athlete (ANA) process will be maintained in 2022.

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In 2022, no more than twenty (20) athletes (in total, not per competition)
will be granted eligibility to compete (as ANAs) in the following internationalcompetitions: (a) the World Race Walking Team Championship to be held inMuscat, OMA, in March 2022; (b) the World Athletics Indoor Championships to beheld in Belgrade, SRB, in March 2022; (c) the World Athletics Championships tobe held in Oregon, USA, in July 2022; (d) the European Championships to be heldin Munich in August 2022; (e) the World Half Marathon Championships to be heldin Yanghzou, CHN, in November 2022; and (f) the European Cross CountryChampionships to be held in Turin in December 2022. 1 RusAF may choose whichathletes will make up these twenty ANAs out of those who have applied for andbeen granted ANA status, but it must choose athletes in the International
Registered Testing Pool in priority to any other athletes. No changes may be madeto the twenty designated ANAs, for any reason, once they have been nominatedby RusAF.
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There is no cap on the number of Russian athletes who may compete (ifinvited, and if they have been granted ANA status) in international competitions
that are not listed in paragraph 2. Therefore, no cap applies (for example) to theWorld Athletics U20 Championships to be held in Cali, COL, in August 2022.
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Russian under-15 athletes may continue to compete in under-15
international competitions as ANAs without the need to make individual
applications to the Doping Review Board. 2

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For the avoidance of doubt, Russian masters-level athletes must apply for
ANA status if they wish to compete in international competitions that are underWorld Athletics’ jurisdiction, but not if they are only competing in events that areunder the jurisdiction of the World Masters Association, not of World Athletics.

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Council may revoke the ANA process at any time, in its absolute discretion,(a) if the Taskforce advises that satisfactory progress is not being made against
the milestones and KPIs set out in the Reinstatement Plan; or (b) if any of the 20
athletes designated to compete as ANAs in the competitions listed in paragraph 2
above commits an anti-doping rule violation. In addition, the ANA quota of 20 set
at paragraph 2 will be automatically reduced by 25% for each separate failure tocomply with the ANA requirements (whether of additional testing or otherwise).
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The Doping Review Board and the AIU (with the input of the Taskforce)are authorised to revise the ANA process where they consider it necessary or
helpful to do so to ensure that process remains fit for purpose.

Rune Andersen, Taskforce Chair
1 December 2021

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The quota applies only to the senior version of these events, and not to any age-category equivalentof these events.
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This includes the Children of Asia Games to be held in Vladivostok from 27 July to 8 August 2022.
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