It is 'stupid' to cancel intl competitions in Russia, hopefully this practice will not become widespread - Mutko
MOSCOW. Dec 23 (Interfax) - It is "stupid" to cancel competitions because of suspicions of doping, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko told reporters.
Rather, it is necessary to punish specific persons who are responsible for that, he said.
"The cancellation of competitions should have some grounds. Sanctions should be of a specific nature: there is an athlete [who dopes] - punish him. How can one assess decisions not to hold competitions? These are stupid decisions! I hope this practice will not become widespread," Mutko said.
He also criticized individual foreign athletes who said they would boycott competitions hosted by Russia because of lack of trust.
"Politics is involved here. Boycott runs counter to the Charter of the IOC [International Olympic Committee]," he said.
Mutko also said that international sports federations should not condone such provocations because they lead to a deadlock.
Russian organizations conducted extensive preparations for the competitions that have now been cancelled, he said, referring to the cancelled competitions as part of the Biathlon World Cup in the Russian city of Tyumen, for which 20,000 tickets had already been sold.