I love Russia, Russian literature, and Russian culture. However, Russian society is at the moment one in which cheating is condoned and indeed practiced by people at the highest levels of government and business. It is thus perhaps not surprising that cheating is also apparently widely practiced by Russian athletes and teams. One need only consider, for example, the top Russian middle-distance runners suspended before the 2008 Olympics and the many Russian winter sports athletes suspended before the 2010 Olympics.
In how many countries is doping considered such a systematic problem that the head of state becomes involved?
"But IOC President Jacques Rogge said on February 8 that he raised concerns directly with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and the Russian sports minister because of 11 winter sports doping cases involving Russian athletes during the past year."
http://www.rferl.org/content/On_Eve_Of_Winter_Olympics_30_Athletes_Banned_For_Doping/1956201.html
Also consider the following:
"The number of suspensions, and the varied events involved, raised troubling questions about possible ineptitude or corruption in Russian drug-testing procedures and also prompted concerns about whether a deliberate, systematic attempt was made by coaches or officials to undermine drug-testing protocols."
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/01/sports/01iht-01doping.14929871.html