The Latest: Wrestling works to validate Russian athletes

The Latest on the Rio Games (all times local to Rio de Janeiro):

8:35 p.m.

Wrestling's international federation is working to validate the eligibility of the Russian wrestlers who've qualified for the Rio Olympics.

United World Wrestling president Nenad Lalovic announced the newly implemented process on Monday. He also noted that the World-Anti Doping Agency has already tested each Russian wrestler at accredited laboratories - with some of those athletes having passed as many as four tests.

Lalovic said that the UWW recently clarified to the International Olympic Committee that the Russian labs implicated in the McLaren Report are not part of its testing protocol. He added that the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency tested 108 wrestlers from 38 countries during last year's world championships in Las Vegas and didn't find a single doping violation.

Still, the UWW has requested more information and evidence about the wrestlers said to be implicated in "disappearing positive tests."

Russia is arguably the world's top wrestling nation, earning 11 medals in 18 weight classes at the 2012 London Games. The Russians are expected to field another strong team in Rio, led by two-time world champion Abdulrashid Sadulaev.

___

6:47 p.m.

Russian doping whistleblower Yulia Stepanova is appealing her ban from the Olympics, saying it was based on incorrect information and dubious legal grounds.

Stepanova sent a letter to the International Olympic Committee contending she never said she wouldn't compete for the Russian team, as the IOC stated. The IOC would not make any exception for her to compete under a neutral flag.

She says the IOC's ban of any Russian athlete who has previously served a doping ban is not permitted - a ruling the Court of Arbitration for Sport made in 2011.

Stepanova was an 800-meter runner who got caught for doping, but later came forward to expose the Russian doping system.

Both the World Anti-Doping Agency and track's governing body, the IAAF, recommended she be allowed in the Olympics.

___

6:42 p.m.

Tour de France stage winner Jarlinson Pantano will replace Nairo Quintana at the Rio Olympics after the Colombian climbing star complained of an illness that affected his Grand Tour performance.

The Colombian Cycling Federation announced its decision Monday.

Quintana was expected to challenge Chris Froome for the yellow jersey, but he was never able to mount an attack in the high mountains. His team, Movistar, said Quintana will rest before undergoing medical tests in the coming weeks to determine what caused his Tour struggles.

Pantano was chosen by Colombia national team coach Carlos Jaramillo. He will fly to Rio on Aug. 4 after fulfilling commitments in Belgium and France with his trade team, IAM Cycling.

The Olympic road race is Aug. 6.

___

4:20 p.m.

The International Weightlifting Federation is seeking "further clarification" from the International Olympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency before making a decision on which Russian athletes can be cleared to compete at the Rio de Janeiro Games.

The Budapest-based IWF says that "some points might lead to confusion" regarding the IOC ruling giving individual sports federations the responsibility of deciding who can compete in Rio.

The IWF said no Russian weightlifter sanctioned for doping will be allowed to compete - even if they had already served their suspension - and that it is waiting for evidence from the Russian athletes entered for Rio before making its decision.

___

4:13 p.m.

Apparently all reigning Olympic all-around champion Gabby Douglas needed to overcome a so-so performance at Olympic Trials is quality time with national team coordinator Martha Karolyi.

Karolyi praised Douglas for her steady improvement during a recently completed national training camp, and said Douglas will likely be given an opportunity to defend the gold medal she won in London four years ago.

Douglas made the five-woman team at Olympic Trials two weeks ago despite finishing eighth in the all-around. Karolyi said she believed Douglas would respond to extended time under Karolyi's watch following a turbulent period in which Douglas parted ways her coach.

Karolyi said there is a "very, very strong possibility" Douglas will be entered in the all-around.

Douglas finished second behind teammate Simone Biles at the 2015 world championships. No female gymnast has repeated as Olympic champion since Vera Caslavska of Czechoslovakia did it in 1968.

___

3:15 p.m.

Not everyone is upset with Olympic housing.

The South African Olympic team says it is happy with its accommodations in Rio de Janeiro, calling the apartments "excellent."

The South African Olympic committee says its athletes have everything they need and "have been lucky."

The South Africans said air conditioning, Wi-Fi and plumbing were all working well, and they also had a swimming pool.

The South African committee says facilities "look like being on a par with most Olympic athletes' villages," but noted the village wasn't complete.

U.S. boxer Claressa Shields wrote on Facebook that USA boxing has been in Rio for five days with zero problems, and that Rio "is a beautiful place."

___

2:14 p.m.

Former World Anti-Doping Agency president Dick Pound believes it was a "cop-out" by the IOC to leave the decision on participation of Russian athletes at the Rio Games to the global sports federations.

Pound is a senior IOC member and had been among the most vocal proponents of a total ban on Russia following allegations of state-organized doping.

Pound tells The Associated Press he wrote a personal letter last week to IOC President Thomas Bach saying "there is simply no alternative" to excluding the entire Russian team because of evidence of government involvement in doping.

The IOC executive board decided against a complete ban on Sunday, giving the international federations the task of vetting Russian athletes in their own sports.

Pound says "I think it's a cop-out to delegate all this to the federations," adding, "it's the worst precedent I can imagine."

___

2:07 p.m.

The head of the Russian Rowing Federation says two of his athletes are planning to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport after new International Olympic Committee rules barred them from the Rio de Janeiro Games.

Federation president Veniamin But tells Russian agency R-Sport that rowers Ivan Podshivalov and Anastasia Karabelshchikova plan to file an appeal to CAS if they are not allowed to compete at the Olympics.

Both Podshivalov and Karabelshchikova had previously served doping bans, automatically ruling them out of the games under rules brought in by the IOC on Sunday.

The agent of world 100-meter breaststroke swimming champion Yulia Efimova earlier told Russian media he was considering filing a similar appeal.

__

12:13 p.m.

Swimming's global governing body FINA says it will retest doping samples from all Russians who competed at last year's world aquatics championships in Russia.

The championships were held in the Russian city of Kazan at a time when World Anti-Doping Agency investigator Richard McLaren has accused Russian government officials of overseeing a mass doping cover-up of failed drug tests by Russians.

The championships ran from July 24 through August 9, with Russia finishing third in the medal table. The championships also included diving, water polo and synchronized swimming.

___

11:54 a.m.

Swimming governing body FINA has ruled seven Russian swimmers ineligible to compete at the Olympics, including three it says were linked to recent allegations of a major doping cover-up by Russian authorities.

Reigning world 100-meter breaststroke champion Yulia Efimova is among four Russian swimmers who FINA says were withdrawn by the Russian Swimming Federation because they previously served doping bans.

The International Olympic Committee on Sunday restricted athletes with previous doping bans from representing Russia.

FINA says three more swimmers were identified by World Anti-Doping Agency investigator Richard McLaren when he examined evidence that Russian government officials ordered the cover-up of hundreds of doping tests.

They are 2008 Olympic silver and 2012 bronze medalist Nikita Lobintsev, bronze medalist Vladimir Morozov and world junior record holder Daria Ustinova.

___

11:40 a.m.

Australia's delegation isn't staying in Olympic housing for now.

The country's Olympic team leader says there are electrical and plumbing problems in the complex. A news conference is expected later in the day.

The 31-building village is expected to house 18,000 athletes and officials at the height of the games. Six Australian athletes due to arrive Monday and 50 on Tuesday will temporarily stay in hotels or other accommodations.

___

11:33 a.m.

At least eight Russian athletes are set to miss next month's games in Rio de Janeiro under new IOC rules prohibiting former dopers from competing.

Russia's top Olympic official, Alexander Zhukov, said that number could rise.

While Zhukov did not name the athletes, competitors in swimming, cycling and weightlifting are likely to be affected.

The International Olympic Committee executive board decided Sunday against imposing a complete ban on Russian athletes from the Rio Games over allegations of state-sponsored doping. The IOC asked individual global sports federations to decide on entry of Russian athletes.