67 Russian athletes appeal Olympic ban- minister

67 Russian athletes have lodged appeals to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, against their bans from the upcoming Rio Olympics in August.

Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko revealed this on Monday, but he did not mention the names of the athletes.

In November, Russia was suspended from all track and field events following an independent report from the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), which revealed a culture of cheating.

On June 17, the International Association of Athletics Federation ( IAAF) upheld its ban on Russian athletes, further dampening Russia’s hope to compete in the games.

Russian Olympic Committee president Alexander Zhukov, has described the ban as “legally indefensible.”

The IAAF set out the exceptional eligibility criteria for athletes that includes having their clean doping record verified by credible agencies apart from those from Russia.

IAAF further insists that any Russian athletes cleared to compete in Rio must do so on a neutral basis not under the Russian flag.

Track and field athletes in the country have not participated in international competitions since January.