Russia's Track and Field IS Banned From The Rio Games.

Just came across the wire in the overnight.  (Was about to go to bed, and found this on Twitter before I went.)

Probably about 3:15 AM Pacific this morning, the Council for Arbitration of Sport has rejected the Russian appeal, ending the Russian track and field team for the Rio Olympics.

The immediate after-effect is obvious:  The decision now means that the IOC Executive Committee appears to have the legal right to expel Russia completely from the Rio Games.

Ben Bloom from the Telegraph now believes the IOC has no choice but to ban Russia from the Games:

Huge pressure on IOC after ban upheld on Russian track and field athletes. Surely they have no option but a blanket Russian ban for Rio now.

— Ben Bloom (@benbloomsport) July 21, 2016

I fully agree.  But I see two major problems that have me believe Dick Pound might be right and the rest of the Russian team (with still rowing and weightlifting considering bans of the Russian team) competes:

The first problem is, really, the obvious reality that most of the major athletes, especially in track and field, are juicing.  If anyone can find one clean American track and field medalist from these Games, I'd like to know about it.

Note I did NOT say "pass a drug test".  I said "Clean".

Now, that said, there's a difference between "institutionalized" and "state-sponsored".  The only reason USA Track and Field is still accredited (even after a threat a number of years back they would be tossed!) is that they did not cross that line.

That said, this leads to the other problem, which needs a slight degree of background on exactly what Vlad Putin is trying to do here:

I would need to remember the term I saw in a previous article about Putin and the drug-fest at the Sochi Homophobe-lympics.

Let us make no secret:  Vladimir Putin wants to restart the sporting Cold War, and turn it into a Hot War on other international fronts:  Against LGBT's, against uppity former states of the Soviet Bloc, etc. and so forth and so on.

Putin's performance around and the Russian performance at the Sochi Homophobe-lympics gave Putin a fair degree of carte blanche to go into the Ukraine and attempt to squash human rights at home.

His strategy is to use these international events to galvanize the homefront.  I just forget the term they used for it.

The second real problem is a very simple one:  I do not, at this time, believe the Rio Games will complete.  I do not believe the Closing Ceremonies will take place.  I believe there will be a sufficient amount of incidents to fell these Games.

And banning Russia may give Putin provocation to do just that.  It is clear that Vlad Putin has no regard for the Olympic movement, except for political ends through sporting terrorism - Hell, see the open support for Russian hooliganism at Euro 2016!  (You may make the case that the amount of American dirty athletes makes the same case here -- I won't stand and argue.  The only difference I would state is institutionalized drug culture vs. a state-sponsored drug culture.)

Do I believe a Russian Olympic expulsion would be followed by a Russian terrorist attack on the Rio Games?  I consider it very possible, yes.

This is the main reason I cannot discount Dick Pound's comment that he does not believe the IOC has the spine to pull it off.

We should find out within one week.