GENEVA — Lawyers for Russia defender Ruslan Kambolov have said FIFA closed an investigation into suspected doping, eight weeks before the World Cup begins. FIFA terminated the case because of a “lack of evidence of such violations,” Moscow-based law firm Sila said in a statement on its website. FIFA opened the case after the World Anti-Doping Agency provided many international sports bodies with evidence of suspected Russian doping and coverups by state authorities over several years. Two months ago, Mutko also said FIFA was investigating a former defender with the Russia under-21 team, Ivan Knyazev. The World Cup begins June 14 in Moscow.

Source: National Post April 20, 2018 09:05 UTC