Ever since the morning of 14th May, protests have been taking place all over Berlin regarding a decision made by Moscow which banned German journalist Hajo Seppelt from covering the FIFA World Cup, 2018. Along with many other reasons, Seppelt’s article, which revolved around the Russian state-sponsored doping, is expected to have been the cause behind his expulsion.
Back in 2014, Hajo Seppelt had released a short film, titled Geheimsache Doping – Wie Russland seine Sieger macht (The Doping Secret: How Russia Makes its Winners), which was broadcasted on ARD which exposed the details regarding the 1000 athletes who had been doped during the Olympics. Hajo Seppelt had also accused the Russians of having rigged members from the IAAF to their favour as well.
Hence, prior to the FIFA World Cup set to be held in Russia, Hajo Seppelt has confirmed that his visa has been declined. In a public statement, Seppelt announced that his name was apparently listed on a “persona non grata” list in Russia. No specifications had been explained to him upon the decline of his visa, but Hajo stated that the “uncovering of the state doping system has had such great impact for Russia that it felt that it needed to take such measures”.
Recalling the official FIFA rules and regulations, Hajo Seppelt stated that he looked forward to the next steps taken by FIFA, which guaranteed access to unfettered coverage of its tournament. German Government spokesman Steffen Seibert also stressed FIFA to take action in the case, in what is obviously the biggest international sporting event following the Olympics. He also stated that Russia will be deemed as a bad and incompetent host if they let personal issues fall in the way of journalism once “the freedom of the press and of opinion is curtailed before the eyes of the world.”