Slow and injured - Stepanova's comeback falls flat

Yulia Stepanova's much-heralded return to action turned into a damp squib on Wednesday when the Russian whistleblower, running as an independent athlete, dropped out of her 800 meters heat with a foot injury having been off the pace throughout.

Stepanova has not raced since September due to the ban on Russian athletes but raced under the European Athletics Association (EAA) flag at the European championships after the sport's governing body requested she be given special dispensation to compete as an independent.

"Yulia is very weak psychologically and she can only run when she has been doping," her former coach Vladimir Kazarin told Sport Express newspaper.