Russian weightlifters Alexei Selyutin and Yekaterina Vlasova banned for doping

Two Russian weightlifters have been banned for doping in a further hit to the credibility of both Russian sport and weightlifting ahead of the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

Former European under-23 champion Alexei Selyutin was banned for four years and Russian national champion Yekaterina Vlasova for 18 months.

While Selyutin and Vlasova were unlikely to make the Russian team for Rio, their bans are a further blow for Russian weightlifting, which already risks being barred from the Olympics altogether for numerous earlier doping cases.

Weightlifting is also in the grip of a doping crisis after many medalists from the 2008 and 2012 Olympics failed retests of their samples.