Stanislav Pozdnyakov: “The ROC is a stable organization and we are looking forward to 2021”

The President of the Russian Olympic Committee summed up the results of the ROC Executive Board Meeting held on Thursday and answered questions from journalists.

— At the final meeting of the ROC Executive Board this year, several important decisions were made, – said Stanislav Pozdnyakov. — One of them was the approval of the new anti-doping rules of the Russian Olympic Committee. This is due to the fact that from January 1, 2021, the revised World Anti-Doping Code comes into force and the ROC must comply with this international document.

The financial results of 2020 were also reviewed and a plan for the next calendar year was approved. The ROC is ready, within the frames of its Programmes, to finance in full the preparation and participation of our team at the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Furthermore, the ROC came up with an initiative to improve the efficiency of the work of the national sports federations. We conducted two large-scale studies on this topic, which included not only sports, but also macroeconomic indicators. They give us a real picture, including in terms of funding the national sports federations, which has significantly reduced due to the global pandemic.

The Russian Olympic Committee has proposed measures to improve the efficiency of our partner organizations and federations, including direct financing of their activities related to anti-doping and international events, as well as planning, financial and economic activities. These funds will be included in the ROC budget for 2021, and we are confident that such steps will help us avoid unpleasant situations in the future as was the case with RusAF.

Summing up the results of this year, I would like to note that the Russian Olympic Committee is a financially stable organization and we are optimistic about 2021.

— What changes in anti-doping rules were adopted and are they related to the meeting of the founders of RUSADA which will be held on Friday?

— They are related to the new World Anti-Doping Code, which comes into force next year. As for tomorrow’s meeting, the composition of the founders and the Supervisory Board will be discussed. Starting from January 1, 2021, sports organizations, which include absolutely all the National Olympic Committees, cannot be members of the supervisory boards of anti-doping agencies. Accordingly, by supporting the revised World Anti-Doping Code, we will withdraw from the ranks of RUSADA’s founders.

— How do you assess the prospects of Russian athletes in new sports included in the Olympic programme — surfing, sport climbing, skateboarding and break dance?

— Our athletes are quite good when it comes to sport climbing. In Tokyo, this sport will be presented only as all-around event, and even profile specialists cannot predict the outcome.

We can also see good results in skateboarding. We hope that Russian athletes will be quite successful in break dance. Here we already have a winner — at the Summer Youth Olympic Games held in Buenos Aires. We hope that these young athletes will go further and bring joy to all of us.

Overall, we have potential medal winners in 23 Olympic sports — more than any other country. And our strategy is to systematically train and improve in all the sports included into the Olympic Games Programme.