Russian athletes will not be permitted to compete in the Paralympics after a last-minute appeal was denied. The entire Russian Paralympic team was banned from the Games after reports from the 2014 Paralympics in Sochi showed widespread doping among Russia's athletes. The blanket ban is unprecedented in Paralympic history.
The Court for the Arbitration of Sport declined to overturn the International Paralympic Committee's decision to ban the entire Russian team. Russian authorities have decried the decision as one motivated by anti-Russian politics.
The Court for the Arbitration of Sport upheld the decision made by the International Paralympic Committee following allegations of state-sponsored doping. A statement for CAS found that the IPC "did not violate any procedural rule in dealing with the with the disciplinary process" which led to the suspension of the Russian Paralympic committee.
It added that the decision to ban Russia, "was made in accordance with the IPC rules and was proportionate in the circumstances."
Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko told the Tass news agency that the decision was "more political than judicial."
The International Olympic Committee decided against a blanket ban for the Russian teams during the Rio Olympics, instead leaving the decision to ban athletes up to the individual sports federations. The Russian track & field and weightlifting teams were both banned from competition.
The Paralympics begin on September 7 in Rio.
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