Russia could face a life ban from all major sports events following “discrepancies” in a lab database, the World Anti-Doping Agency warned.
The country has been given three weeks to explain “inconsistencies” or risk being excluded from the Olympics and world championships.
Russia also stands being barred from hosting major sports events.
The chairman of WADA’s compliance panel, Jonathan Taylor, said “evidence shows that some data might have been deleted, and the panel seek to understand from the Russian authorities what their explanation could possibly be.”
Russia handed over data from its Moscow laboratory in January as a condition of its reintegration back into the sporting fold after a three-year suspension for a state-sponsored doping programme.
WADA executive committee had on Monday informed that a formal compliance procedure had been opened over the discovery of “inconsistencies”.
Taylor said that “the moment is hypothetical, and if the experts maintain their current view, then the compliance review committee will make a recommendation that they are not compliant’ and proposing consequences.
“In a case with a ‘critical non-compliance’, there is now a starting point for the sanctions that can go up and down, and they do include sanctions against RUSADA and options include no events hosted in Russia, and they do include no participation of Russian athletes in world championships and up to the Olympics.”
Taylor emphasised that under a new set of rules, WADA now has the power to apply such punishments, but also explained that if Russia were to appeal, the case would ultimately be decided by the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS).
“Everyone has agreed they will enforce what CAS agrees,” he said.
“We’ve got to be very careful. Procedure has got to be followed. We can’t prejudge the outcome.”
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) rejected WADA’s recommendation to ban Russia from the 2016 Olympics in Rio following the doping scandal, but suspended the team from the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, with athletes forced to compete as neutrals.
On Monday the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) confirmed its decision to uphold a ban on Russia just four days before the start of the World Championships in Doha after hearing a report from its task force overseeing the country’s reinstatement efforts.
Russia faces the prospect of being excluded from many other events, including next year’s Olympics in Tokyo and football’s 2022 World Cup.
