Doping whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov has forecast the upcoming football World Cup finals in his native Russia will be “clean” for the duration of the month-long tournament.
Rodchenkov said Thursday that the vast sums of money on offer to top footballers meant they and those around them such as their agents, had a huge financial interest in not risking their careers by being caught doping.
Rodchenkov also said that as no Russian officials would be involved in any anti-doping work during the World Cup, which begins on June 14, as a result of recent scandals, there was far less chance of foul play.
Asked about the likelihood of a “clean” World Cup in Russia, Rodchenkov replied: “That is not an easy question to answer because I’m far from Russia and have information from the internet and mass media.
“I know it will only be foreign doping control.
“It should be clean in terms of this one month of competition in Russia, because there are controls and for such a major event WADA has a special team of independent observers.
“During competitions all people are clean, most things are done out of competition.”