Russian cyber hackers breached the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) website disclosing medical information of basketballer Elena Delle Donne, tennis players Venus Williams and sister Serena, and gymnast Simone Biles.
Documents, which stated that the three American stars received medical exemptions to use banned drugs, have been published this week.
The anti-drug organization confirmed the authenticity of the released data. It has been suspected that a Russian cyber espionage unit named Fancy Bear is the culprit.
Forensic specialists have connected the hackers to incidents involving government agencies, non-profit organizations and corporations.
It is also possible that the group is the same faction that attacked the computer servers of the Democratic National Committee. It has also been believed that Fancy Bear is affiliated with the Russian military intelligence.
In connection with the Moscow-sanctioned doping use which prompted the suspension of more than a hundred Russian athletes from the Rio Olympic Games, it is probable that the operation is a retaliatory response.
It can be recalled that last May, Russia's long time anti-doping lab chief had spilled the beans on the Moscow's elaborate effort to run a doping program. Part of this approach is the alleged cheating scheme at the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
Anti-doping agency director-general Olivier Niggli has commented that the current criminal acts greatly compromise the effort of the global anti-doping community to re-establish trust with Russia.
The hackers have written on their website that the Americans played well but not fair in Brazil.
The release of the documents has been applauded in Russia considering that the medical data is evidence enough of widespread drug use among US athletes.
In addition, the situation has been viewed as a double standard of global anti-drug regulators. However, Dmitry Peskov, President Vladimir Putin's spokesperson, has simply ruled out any Russian involvement.
After the leak, Simone Biles has posted on her Twitter that she is indeed taking medicine for her ADHD malady.
Although she has reiterated that she had always followed the rules, the hackers accused her of taking an illegal psycho-stimulant pill. The Rio Olympics quadruple gold medalist in gymnastics has been cleared by the WADA to take the prescription drug.
