Putin described the exclusion of the athletes as discrimination

President Vladimir Putin has hit out at the decision to ban Russian track and field athletes from the upcoming Olympic Games in Rio. Putin described the exclusion of the athletes as discrimination and part of a deliberate campaign.And Putin also said that medals won in Rio would be devalued due to the absence of Russian participation. Your colleagues from other sports powers realise that the value of their medals will be different, Putin told track and field stars such as Yelena Isinbayeva and Sergey Shubenkov.This victory will have a different taste - or no taste at all.And the Russian president added: The current situation does not only go beyond the legal sphere, it goes beyond common sense.We cannot accept indiscriminate disqualification of our athletes with absolutely clean doping histories. We cannot and will not accept what in fact is pure discrimination. Pole vaulting great Yelena Isinbayeva will have to sit out the Rio Olympics Putin was speaking after the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) had confirmed that the ban on the athletes would remain in place.The suspension was imposed in November due to systematic state-sponsored doping by Russia and the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld that decision last week.Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko wrote to the IAAF on Monday in an attempt to get the ban overturned but was told there were no grounds for further review.Putin spoke to the Russian team on Wednesday, before they fly out on Thursday, and dozens of the track and field athletes who are not eligible to compete in the Rio Games also attended.Its obvious that the absence of Russian competitors, leaders in many disciplines, will lower the intensity of the fight and that means the spectacle at the upcoming events, said Putin.More than 100 Russian athletes - including all but one of the track and field team - will miss the Olympics but the country has avoided being totally excluded. Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a meeting with Russian athletes at the Kremlin The International Olympic Committee (IOC) sparked fierce criticism on Sunday when it resisted a blanket ban in favour of allowing individual sports federations to make the call on which Russians can go to Rio.And Russias Olympic team could number more than 200 after fencing, triathlon and volleyball became the latest sports to declare the countrys athletes eligible to take part in the Games on Wednesday. Also See: Russian judo team get all clear Pavey: IOC sending wrong message IOC opts against Russia ban Russian swimmers to miss Rio Andrew Chafin Jersey . The kind he has every so often. The kind he has when Dwyane Wade sits. James scored 43 points -- 25 in a bewildering first-quarter shooting display -- and Chris Bosh added 21, leading the Miami Heat to a 100-96 win Tuesday night over the Cleveland Cavaliers, who played their first game without injured All-Star guard Kyrie Irving. 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Matthew Stafford was 34-for-45 for 390 yards with two touchdown passes for the Lions (8-4), who bounced back from a pair of road losses to Arizona and New England. The victory moves Detroit a half-game back of Green Bay for first place in the NFC North. The Packers host the Patriots on Sunday. Bell totaled 91 yards on 23 carries while Johnson had 11 catches for 146 yards for Detroit, which had lost nine straight games in its traditional Thanksgiving Day game, but have now won its past two thanks to this win and a victory over Green Bay last year. Jay Cutler was 31-for-48 for 280 yards with a pair of touchdown passes to Alshon Jeffery along with two interceptions for the Bears (5-7), who had won their previous two coming into the contest. Jeffery had nine catches for 71 yards. 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Romo completed 18-of-29 passes for 199 yards and threw two interceptions as Dallas (8-4) dropped its third straight home game. Murray failed to reach the century mark for only the second time in 2014. He finished with a season-low 73 yards on 20 carries against the Eagles. The teams will meet again in Philadelphia on Dec. 14. Final Score: Seattle 19, San Francisco 3 San Francisco, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Richard Shermans two interceptions highlighted a dominant defensive effort, as the Seattle Seahawks routed the San Francisco 49ers, 19-3, in a highly anticipated NFC West Thanksgiving clash. The outspoken cornerback, whose key defensive stop against San Francisco receiver Michael Crabtree in Januarys NFC Championship Game helped vault the Seahawks into the Super Bowl, picked off Colin Kaepernick twice as Seattle (8-4) limited the 49ers offense to just 164 total yards. Russell Wilson completed 15-of-22 passes for 236 yards and a touchdown pass to Robert Turbin, Marshawn Lynch ran for 104 yards on 20 carries and Steven Hauschka kicked five field goals for the Seahawks, who have won five of their last six games. The Seahawks now sit all alone for second place in the NFC West behind Arizona, which owns a 9-2 record heading into its matchup against Atlanta on Sunday. Kaepernick threw for 121 yards on 16-of-29 passing as the 49ers (7-5) had their three-game win streak come to an end. ' ' '