11 episodes

The story of the systematic doping of the 2012 and 2014 Olympics by the Russian state set against the ongoing attempts to catch the cheats.

Bloodsport BBC Radio 4

    • Sports
    • 4.3 • 15 Ratings

The story of the systematic doping of the 2012 and 2014 Olympics by the Russian state set against the ongoing attempts to catch the cheats.

    10. Cleaning the Stables

    10. Cleaning the Stables

    Bloodsport is the story of the systematic doping of the 2012 and 2014 Olympics by the Russian state. It is the single most important sports story of our time and it reads like a Cold War thriller. The Evening Standard's sports correspondent Matt Majendie tells the whole story from 2012 till now.
    Episode 10 sees how the Russia saga has dragged on and on and is still in dispute at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. We also see how the various institutions of world anti-doping - the I.O.C. and W.A.D.A etc - have reformed themselves in the wake of the Russia Scandal. But will it work?
    For the first time, you’ll hear the whole story from 2012 to 2020 told by the people who were there. You’ll hear from Paula Radcliffe and Sebastian Coe on London 2012, you’ll meet the expert German investigator who cracked the case wide open and from athletes who doped. We’ve got access to the elite Swiss lab racing to finish testing London 2012 samples and we’ve spoken to the guy who masterminded doping control at the London games.
    You’ll also hear first-hand testimony from people who blew the whistle inside Russia (at the risk of their own lives) and from seasoned journalists who watched open-mouthed as the whole thing unfolded. And we’ll take you into the ongoing arms race between doper and tester, to see how the science of testing plays out in the analysis of blood and urine samples. Despite it being eight years ago, the story isn’t over. There are unfinished corruption trials in French Courts and ongoing allegations of flagrant Russian cheating (even as the Russian government denies all the evidence). Against all this is the soon-to-be pressing question of whether Russia will participate in the now postponed Tokyo Olympics. The credibility of the Olympic movement might hang on the decision. The clock is ticking.

    • 13 min
    9. Strict liability

    9. Strict liability

    Bloodsport is the story of the systematic doping of the 2012 and 2014 Olympics by the Russian state. It is the single most important sports story of our time and it reads like a Cold War thriller. The Evening Standard's sports correspondent Matt Majendie tells the whole story from 2012 till now.
    Episode 9 takes us inside the world of doping and looks at the human damage it inflicts. Not just on those cheated but also on the cheats themselves. Coercion, health effects, abuse. It’s not obvious where moral responsibility lies.
    For the first time, you’ll hear the whole story from 2012 to 2020 told by the people who were there. You’ll hear from Paula Radcliffe and Sebastian Coe on London 2012, you’ll meet the expert German investigator who cracked the case wide open and from athletes who doped. We’ve got access to the elite Swiss lab racing to finish testing London 2012 samples and we’ve spoken to the guy who masterminded doping control at the London games.
    You’ll also hear first-hand testimony from people who blew the whistle inside Russia (at the risk of their own lives) and from seasoned journalists who watched open-mouthed as the whole thing unfolded. And we’ll take you into the ongoing arms race between doper and tester, to see how the science of testing plays out in the analysis of blood and urine samples. Despite it being eight years ago, the story isn’t over. There are unfinished corruption trials in French Courts and ongoing allegations of flagrant Russian cheating (even as the Russian government denies all the evidence). Against all this is the soon-to-be pressing question of whether Russia will participate in the now postponed Tokyo Olympics. The credibility of the Olympic movement might hang on the decision. The clock is ticking.

    • 15 min
    8. The Duchess

    8. The Duchess

    Bloodsport is the story of the systematic doping of the 2012 and 2014 Olympics by the Russian state. It is the single most important sports story of our time and it reads like a Cold War thriller. The Evening Standard's sports correspondent Matt Majendie tells the whole story from 2012 till now.
    Revelations emerge from Grigory Rodchenkov's backstory. Plus we get one step closer to him in witness protection.
    For the first time, you’ll hear the whole story from 2012 to 2020 told by the people who were there. You’ll hear from Paula Radcliffe and Sebastian Coe on London 2012, you’ll meet the expert German investigator who cracked the case wide open and from athletes who doped. We’ve got access to the elite Swiss lab racing to finish testing London 2012 samples and we’ve spoken to the guy who masterminded doping control at the London games.
    You’ll also hear first-hand testimony from people who blew the whistle inside Russia (at the risk of their own lives) and from seasoned journalists who watched open-mouthed as the whole thing unfolded. And we’ll take you into the ongoing arms race between doper and tester, to see how the science of testing plays out in the analysis of blood and urine samples. Despite it being eight years ago, the story isn’t over. There are unfinished corruption trials in French Courts and ongoing allegations of flagrant Russian cheating (even as the Russian government denies all the evidence). Against all this is the soon-to-be pressing question of whether Russia will participate in the now postponed Tokyo Olympics. The credibility of the Olympic movement might hang on the decision. The clock is ticking.

    • 14 min
    7. Dead Russians

    7. Dead Russians

    Bloodsport is the story of the systematic doping of the 2012 and 2014 Olympics by the Russian state. It is the single most important sports story of our time and it reads like a Cold War thriller. The Evening Standard's sports correspondent Matt Majendie tells the whole story from 2012 till now.
    Episode seven hears how doping mastermind, Grigory Rodchenkov, went public about Russian cheating at the London and Sochi Olympics - and swapped life in Russian for a US witness protection program.
    For the first time, you’ll hear the whole story from 2012 to 2020 told by the people who were there. You’ll hear from Paula Radcliffe and Sebastian Coe on London 2012, you’ll meet the expert German investigator who cracked the case wide open and from athletes who doped. We’ve got access to the elite Swiss lab racing to finish testing London 2012 samples and we’ve spoken to the guy who masterminded doping control at the London games.
    You’ll also hear first-hand testimony from people who blew the whistle inside Russia (at the risk of their own lives) and from seasoned journalists who watched open-mouthed as the whole thing unfolded. And we’ll take you into the ongoing arms race between doper and tester, to see how the science of testing plays out in the analysis of blood and urine samples. Despite it being eight years ago, the story isn’t over. There are unfinished corruption trials in French Courts and ongoing allegations of flagrant Russian cheating (even as the Russian government denies all the evidence). Against all this is the soon-to-be pressing question of whether Russia will participate in the now postponed Tokyo Olympics. The credibility of the Olympic movement might hang on the decision. The clock is ticking.

    • 14 min
    6. Full Protection

    6. Full Protection

    It is the single most important sports story of our time and it reads like a Cold War thriller. The Evening Standard's sports correspondent Matt Majendie tells the whole story from 2012 till now.
    Episode 6 shows how Lamine Diack, the boss of world athletics, conspired with the Russian state to protect their doping system. Diack is currently awaiting trial in a French court accused of corrupting the very sport he was sworn to protect.
    Bloodsport is the story of the systematic doping of the 2012 and 2014 Olympics by the Russian state, its subsequent unmasking and the ongoing fall out amidst the power play of nation against nation. For the first time, you’ll hear the whole story from 2012 to 2020 told by the people who were there. You’ll hear from Paula Radcliffe and Sebastian Coe on London 2012, you’ll meet the expert German investigator who cracked the case wide open and from athletes who doped. We’ve got access to the elite Swiss lab racing to finish testing London 2012 samples and we’ve spoken to the guy who masterminded doping control at the London games. You’ll also hear first-hand testimony from people who blew the whistle inside Russia (at the risk of their own lives) and from seasoned journalists who watched open-mouthed as the whole thing unfolded. And we’ll take you into the ongoing arms race between doper and tester, to see how the science of testing plays out in the analysis of blood and urine samples. Despite it being eight years ago, the story isn’t over. There are unfinished corruption trials in French Courts and ongoing allegations of flagrant Russian cheating.

    • 14 min
    5. Poundland

    5. Poundland

    It is the single most important sports story of our time and it reads like a Cold War thriller. The Evening Standard's sports correspondent Matt Majendie tells the whole story from 2012 till now.
    With the bombshell revelations in the ARD doc, the IOC had to act. They commissioned Dick Pound to investigate the claims. We hear how he and Bavarian cyber-cop, Gunter Younger meticulously stood up almost every one. Yet they knew they didn’t have the whole story. Rodchenkov was the key.
    Bloodsport is the story of the systematic doping of the 2012 and 2014 Olympics by the Russian state, its subsequent unmasking and the ongoing fall out amidst the power play of nation against nation. For the first time, you’ll hear the whole story from 2012 to 2020 told by the people who were there. You’ll hear from Paula Radcliffe and Sebastian Coe on London 2012, you’ll meet the expert German investigator who cracked the case wide open and from athletes who doped. We’ve got access to the elite Swiss lab racing to finish testing London 2012 samples and we’ve spoken to the guy who masterminded doping control at the London games.
    You’ll also hear first-hand testimony from people who blew the whistle inside Russia (at the risk of their own lives) and from seasoned journalists who watched open-mouthed as the whole thing unfolded. And we’ll take you into the ongoing arms race between doper and tester, to see how the science of testing plays out in the analysis of blood and urine samples.
    Despite it being eight years ago, the story isn’t over. There are unfinished corruption trials in French Courts and ongoing allegations of flagrant Russian cheating (even as the Russian government denies all the evidence). Against all this is the soon-to-be pressing question of whether Russia will participate in the now postponed Tokyo Olympics. The credibility of the Olympic movement might hang on the decision. The clock is ticking.

    • 13 min

Customer Reviews

4.3 out of 5
15 Ratings

15 Ratings

Jack_McCoy ,

Short and Great

Love how each episode is 15 min. This show is heavy on interviews with insiders, with some context from the narrator/reporter here and there. It is a simple, but effective podcast about the scale and effectiveness of Russia’s sports doping efforts, and the pathetic inaction from oversight agencies. It’s definitely like a spy thriller.

Top Podcasts In Sports

New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce
Wave Sports + Entertainment
Pardon My Take
Barstool Sports
Mind the Game with LeBron James and JJ Redick
ThreeFourTwo Productions and UNINTERRUPTED
The Bill Simmons Podcast
The Ringer
The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz
Dan Le Batard, Stugotz
Cheap Heat with Peter Rosenberg
Peter Rosenberg

More by BBC

Global News Podcast
BBC World Service
6 Minute English
BBC Radio
You're Dead to Me
BBC Radio 4
In Our Time
BBC Radio 4
Newshour
BBC World Service
The English We Speak
BBC Radio