Documentary
United States of America
Icarus is a documentary film directed by Bryan Fogel, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2017. The film explores the widespread use of performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) in sports and the methods used to cover up their use.
The film initially focuses on Fogel's attempt to see if he can avoid detection through drug testing while participating in a prestigious amateur cycling race called the Haute Route. In search of PEDs, Fogel is introduced to Grigory Rodchenkov, a Russian scientist who was the head of Russia's anti-doping laboratory during the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Rodchenkov provides Fogel with detailed information on the use of PEDs in the sport and how he helped Russian athletes cheat during the Sochi Olympics. The film then takes a dramatic turn as Rodchenkov becomes a key figure in the investigation into Russia's state-sponsored Olympic doping program.
As details of the program are uncovered, Rodchenkov becomes a target for the Russian government and fears for his safety. He flees to the United States and becomes a whistleblower, providing evidence to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) that leads to the banning of Russian athletes from the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Icarus is a riveting and shocking documentary that exposes the seedy world of doping in sports and the lengths to which some countries will go to win. The film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2018.
