The Russian Doping Scandal: Some Reflections on Responsibility in Sport Governance

Abstract

The Russian doping scandal that emerged prior to the 2016 Rio Olympic Games illustrates how responsible sport governance has become a lingering issue for international sport. This article explores how various leaders in international sport, and par-ticularly those from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the World Anti-Doping Agency, dealt with the unfolding scandal and what considerations motivated their actions. It will be shown that the IOC failed to assume responsibility for the scandal or apply the organization’s existing policies. Rather than passing responsibility to other parties, it will be argued that the IOC must assume greater responsibility to deliver sport that meets the public’s expectations (and the organization’s promise) of morally responsible sport as stated in the Olympic Charter.