MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin called Friday for a new anti-doping commission to be created to shape Russia's future strategy, as the country faces possible exclusion from the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Putin's intervention came as former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev wrote to International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach to oppose a blanket ban on the Russian team, saying that a collective sanction was "unacceptable."
Putin did not directly address allegations that Russian government officials helped to cover up hundreds of doping cases, but said the state was resolutely opposed to performance-enhancing drug use.
"In sport there is not and cannot be a place for any doping," Putin said.