All agencies responsible for anti-doping programs need to be checked - Presidential Aide Levitin
MOSCOW. March 22 (Interfax) - All agencies responsible for anti-doping activity need to be checked, Russian Presidential Aide Igor Levitin has said.
"The activity of all relevant agencies and persons needs to be verified shortly in terms of organization of their functions. Measures need to be elaborated for improving the system of anti-doping activity and functions, powers and measures of disciplinary responsibility need to be specified," Levitin said at a meeting of the Russian Sports Ministry board in Moscow on Tuesday.
"We should pay attention to science and sport. The Soviet Union had strong and advanced scholarly traditions and strong scientific and methodological support. We need to take a close look at physiology, biochemistry and other medical and biological sciences. We will be doomed to lag behind leading sport nations without advanced science," Levitin said.
Russia will constantly lag behind leading sport nations unless it lays strong scientific and methodological groundwork, he said.