Putin to meet depleted Russian team ahead of Rio Games (Reuters)

President Vladimir Putin will give a personal send-off on Wednesday to a diminished Russian Olympic team who travel to the Rio Games even as global sports bodies mull over the eligibility of Russian competitors. The International Olympic Committee threw Russia a lifeline on Sunday, ignoring calls for the national team to be banned over allegations of state-backed doping and giving international sports federations the final say on whether individual Russian athletes could compete in Brazil. Putin, who has warned of a split in the Olympic movement and what Russian officials call creeping political interference in sport, will address the Russian team on Wednesday after an earlier scheduled meeting was postponed due to the doping scandal, Russian news agencies cited the Kremlin as saying.