Russia: Please Let Us Go to Rio

In an editorial published in Britain’s Sunday Times, Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko pleaded for his country’s admittance to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. “Serious mistakes have been made by the federation management, along with athletes and coaches... We are ashamed of them,” Mutko wrote, referring to the doping scandal that prompted an international agreement to bar Russia’s track and field athletes from competing at Rio. “We are very sorry that athletes who tried to deceive us, and the world, were not caught sooner. We are very sorry because Russia is committed to upholding the highest standards in sport and is opposed to anything that threatens the Olympic values.”