Russia was banned from the Olympics and world championships in a range of sports on Monday after the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) ruled to punish it for manipulating laboratory data.

WADA’s executive committee took the decision after it concluded that Moscow had tampered with laboratory data by planting fake evidence and deleting files linked to positive doping tests that could have helped identify drug cheats.

The WADA committee’s decision to punish Russia with a ban was unanimous, the spokesperson said.

 “Russia was afforded every opportunity to get its house in order and rejoin the global anti-doping community for the good of its athletes & of the integrity of sport, but it chose instead to continue in its stance of deception & denial,” World Anti-Doping Agency President Craig Reedie told AP.

The result of the ban means that the Russian flag will not be present at the 2020 in Olympics, and the football team will not compete at the World Cup in Qatar.

The Russian team will, however, be free to participate at Euro 2020, as UEFA’s tournament is not defined as a ‘major event organisation’ in relation to anti-doping breaches.

Russia, which has tried to showcase itself as a global sports power, has been embroiled in doping scandals since a 2015 report commissioned by WADA found evidence of mass doping in Russian athletics.