ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) In a possible shift of support for Russian athletes competing at the 2018 Olympics, IOC President Thomas Bach has told critics not to put pressure on his executive board.
Bach will chair an IOC board meeting on Dec. 5 which could ban Russia’s team from the Pyeongchang Games because of state-sponsored doping at the 2014 Sochi Games.
Long seen as Russia’s ally, Bach this month criticized “unacceptable” demands for a total ban while two Olympic panels investigate the Sochi doping program. Ten Russians have already been disqualified.
However, in a speech Friday, Bach cautioned those “from whichever side … trying to build pressure.