The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) received the information on doping by Russian athletes six years ago but did not investigate the claim, the Washington Post newspaper reported Friday.
Former member of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency RUSADA Vitaly Stepanov told the newspaper that WADA officials had been told of Russian doping during the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. Stepanov claimed that RUSADA had a list of athletes involved and that the doping had been supported by the state.
The whistleblower exchanged “hundreds of emails” with WADA employees but no investigation was opened, he said. WADA finally advised Stepanov to contact the western media in 2014.
WADA spokesman Ben Nichols confirmed Stepanov's story but said that the agency were not given the power to carry out investigations until 2015.
Stepanov told the CBS News television channel about doping by Russian athletes during the Sochi Olympics in 2014 last month.
The former head of Russia's national anti-doping laboratory Grigory Rodchenkov has also spoken out on the subject, saying in an interview with the New York Times that at least 15 Russian Sochi medal winners in had participated in a state-run doping scheme.
The International Olympic Committee has asked WADA to launch an investigation into the allegations.
If the claims are proven true, the Russian national team could be excluded from the participation in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, said President of the International Olympic Committee Thomas Bach.
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