Olympic officials ponder whether to allow banned Russian runner Yulia Stepanova to be an ‘exception’

It seems Olympic leaders aren’t yet sure what to do with Yulia Stepanova.

The Russian athlete is at the center of the current doping scandal that has resulted in her country’s track team being banned from the 2016 Summer Olympics for widespread cheating.

International track officials want to make her an exception — allowing her to compete as a “neutral” athlete — because she acted as a whistleblower, providing crucial information to investigators.

But as an admitted cheater who served a two-year ban for use of performance-enhancing drugs, Stepanova also represents a clear example of systemic wrongdoing in her country.

To some, it might seem contradictory to single her out among scores of Russian athletes, some of whom have never tested positive and are also seeking to participate in Rio de Janeiro this August.

The International Olympic Committee — which has the final say on eligibility for the Games — announced Thursday that it will refer the case to its ethics commission for further discussion.

The IOC “will then take all of the circumstances of the case into consideration and decide whether it merits an exception to the rules,” officials said in a statement.

To make the story even more complicated, Stepanova was allowed to compete in the European track championships this week and injured her foot. It is unclear whether she would be healed in time for Rio.

“First of all, I would like to say that I don’t want this just to be the end of the story,” Sebastian Coe, president of the international track federation, was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.

Coe has been adamant about encouraging athletes to “help us understand the nature of the challenge that we’re dealing with.”

It remains to be seen whether the IOC agrees. No date has been set for a decision.

david.wharton@latimes.com

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