The charge: systematic, state-sponsored doping. The official response: zero tolerance. The International Olympic Committee has backed a ban on Russian athletics imposed by the International Athletics Federation. Russia has vowed to lodge an appeal.

The Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has decried the ban as 'unfair'. Russian sport is still reeling from the suspended disqualification handed to the Russian soccer federation over violent behavior by hooligans at their opening EURO 2016 match against England.

So how endemic is doping, violence and corruption in Russian sport? To what extent are Russian politicians responsible? And should a country with such disdain for sporting values be allowed to host the next World Cup?

What do you think? How Dirty Is Russian Sport?

Write to us: quadriga(at)dw.com

Our guests:

Anna Rose covers Germany for the Russian newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta . She says „Collectively punishing all Russian track and field athletes without individual proof of guilt would be very wrong and only deepens the divide between Russia and the West.”

Hajo Seppelt is a reporter for the German public broadcaster WDR and author of an internationally acclaimed German documentary series on illicit doping in Russia. He says: „The doping crisis utterly discredits organized sport. Russia is certainly an egregious example, but there are other countries that are just lucky no one’s blown the whistle on them so far."

Alan Posener is a political commentator for Die Welt. He says: “Doping, corruption and hooliganism are problems that go beyond Russia. The problem is that in Russia, the state is on the side of the criminals.”