The second McLaren report, published earlier this month, claimed more than 1,000 Russians benefited from a doping cover-up between 2011 and 2015.
“It was an institutional conspiracy,” said Anna Antseliovich, acting director general of Russia’s anti-doping agency.
However, Antseliovich denied it was a state-sponsored programme.
Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesman, said they “need to check the authenticity” of Antseliovich’s words and added that Russia has always denied allegations that the state is involved in doping.
Vitaly Smirnov, the 81-year-old who has been a leading sports official since the Soviet era and who has been appointed by Russian President Vladimir Putin to reform the anti-doping system, told the New York Times: “I don’t want to speak for the people responsible.
“From my point of view, as a former minister of sport, president of Olympic committee – we made a lot of mistakes.”
Smirnov also suggested the leaks made by the Fancy Bears – a group of hackers who have released the medical records of several athletes from around the world – showed Russia had not been competing on a level playing field.
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