Russia rubbishes sports doping ‘conspiracy’

Condemns claim of institutional system to cheat

MOSCOW // Russia yesterday condemned a report in The New York Times that said officials had acknowledged a huge sports doping conspiracy, reiterating claims there was no government involvement. The report, published on Tuesday, said the acting director general of Russia’s national anti-doping agency had “for the first time” conceded that officials set up the programme to cheat.

“It was an institutional conspiracy,” Anna Antseliovich was reported as telling the US newspaper in an article datelined from Moscow.

Ms Antseliovich and others interviewed continued to reject the characterisation of the doping scheme as “state sponsored”, telling the newspaper that top government officials were not involved. But Moscow later attacked the article, with anti-doping agency Rusada insisting that Ms Antseliovich’s words were “distorted and taken out of context”.

The New York Times reporter “took these words out of context, creating the impression that Rusada’s leadership had admitted to an institutional system of a doping cover-up in Russia”, the agency said.

“We want to underline that Rusada does not and cannot have the authority to admit or deny such facts,” it said.

Moscow denies involvement of government

Investigator Richard McLaren said in a new report for the World Anti-Doping Agency this month that more than 1,000 Russian athletes in about 30 sports took part in a plan by Moscow sports ministry officials to use banned drugs at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, the 2012 London Summer Games and other events.

Russia has admitted it had a problem with doping but insists there is no proof there of a state-orchestrated doping programme, a dogged denial that critics claim means Moscow will never tackle the issue.

Yesterday the Kremlin repeated earlier rejections of allegations of state involvement in doping, while also casting doubt on the newspaper report.

“From the very beginning we have denied any involvement by the state or state institutions or services or agencies in the possible use of doping by sportsmen,” said spokesman Dmitry Peskov.