MOSCOW (AP) " Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko, who has come under scrutiny in Russia's doping scandal and was banned from attending the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, was promoted to a deputy prime minister on Wednesday. President Vladimir Putin approved a proposal by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev to appoint Mutko to a deputy premiership in charge of sport, tourism and youth policies, in a decision shown by state TV. Mutko's longtime deputy minister, Pavel Kolobkov, a former gold medal-winning Olympic fencer who has represented Russia at the World Anti-Doping Agency, moves up to become the new sports minister. Mutko becomes one of nine deputy prime ministers in Russia, a title which adds to the wide array of other posts he holds. The report alleged an additional 11 positive tests of Russian soccer players were made to disappear in a state-sponsored doping program from late 2011 to 2015.

Source: New Zealand Herald October 19, 2016 14:37 UTC