RUSSIA have been banned from the upcoming Olympics and World Cup for doping offences.
The nation were not allowed to compete at last year's Winter Olympics in South Korea, and have been banned in athletics since 2015.
It will now not be able to compete in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
However, they will be able to compete in next year's European Championships, which is being held in St Petersburg as well as a number of cities around the continent, as UEFA is not defined as a 'major event organisation'.
Athletes who can demonstrate they comply with doping laws and untainted by the scandal can compete under a neutral flag.
Russia's Anti Doping Agency, Rusada, was first declared 'non-compliant' in 2015, whilst a report published in July 2016 said there was a state-sponsored doping operation across the "vast majority" of Olympic sports.
The World Anti-Doping Agency, Wada, re-instated them as compliant in 2018, on the condition they released data from their lab.
This data was found to have inconsistencies with a whistleblowers' account in 2017, which promopted this latest inquiry.
As a result, Russia will not be able to host or bid for any event for four years.
This includes the 2032 Olympics and Paralympic Games.
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