Russian folk song rejected as substitute Olympic anthem

<p>GENEVA &mdash; Russia’s wish to use a patriotic Soviet-era folk song as a replacement anthem for the Tokyo Olympics was rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Friday in further fallout from a years-long doping scandal.</p>
<p>The court said its panel of three judges was asked to clarify what music it would allow within the <a href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-banned-name-flag-olympic-games-a8bd342806883f66152859701d5ae5d4">two-year ban on Russia’s team name, flag and national anthem</a> from Olympics and world championships imposed in December. </p>
<p>Russian officials proposed the “Katyusha” song, which is strongly identified with the fight against Nazi Germany in World War II.</p>
<p>“The CAS panel considers that ‘any anthem linked to Russia’ extends to any song associated with, or with links to, Russia, which would include Katyusha,” the court said in a statement to The Associated Press. </p>
<p>It is unclear which piece of music Russian Olympic officials could propose in consultation with the International Olympic Committee.</p>
<p>Russia will compete in Tokyo and next year’s Winter Olympics in Beijing as “ROC,” an acronym for the Russian Olympic Committee. </p>
<p>The CAS judges’ ruling in December settled Russia’s long-running dispute with the World Anti-Doping Agency over a state-backed doping program and cover-ups. </p>
<p>The IOC asked the Russian Olympic body last month to submit an alternative piece of music for use at medal ceremonies.</p>
<p>Similar restrictions apply to world championship events in Olympic sports, and most governing bodies have played their own anthems for Russian athletes and teams.</p>
<p>A piece of music by 19th-century Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky was approved by the International Skating Union for its world championships.</p>
<hr />
<p>AP Sports Writer James Ellingworth in Duesseldorf, Germany, contributed to this report</p>
<hr />
<p>More AP Olympics: <a href="https://apnews.com/hub/olympic-games">https://apnews.com/hub/olympic-games</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/AP_Sports">https://twitter.com/AP_Sports</a></p>