Kremlin Vows to Support Sport Ministry's Lawsuit Over Athletes' Defamation

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — On Thursday, the New York Times reported, citing then-director of the Moscow anti-doping laboratory Grigory Rodchenkov, as saying that dozens of Russian athletes at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, including at least 15 medal winners and the entire women’s hockey team, were using performance enhancing substances throughout the Games as part of a "state-run program."

Shortly after the reports emerged, Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said that the claims about doping among Russian athletes at the 2014 Olympics were "absurd," adding that a detailed official response was yet to come.

"We absolutely agree with the assessment given by Minister [of Sports Vitaly] Mutko. And, of course, we would potentially support such actions in terms of taking cases against this gentleman, and in terms of…. those publications that spread slander," Peskov told reporters.

Earlier in the day, the Russian Sports Ministry officially refuted the claims, stressing that no doping program in the Russian sports had ever existed. The ministry also said it would demand an investigation into Rodchenkov's claims, and could also sue the newspaper involved.