Putin: Russia needs to work more closely with intl sporting bodies

[April 14, 2016]    MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia needed to improve its work with international sporting organizations and react promptly to their requests.

Putin, in his annual televised phone-in, was referring to a scandal involving a large number of Russian sports people who had tested positive for the banned meldonium substance. He also said he did not think there was a political subtext to the scandal.

(Reporting by Alexander Winning and Andrew Osborn; Writing by Dmitry Solovyov; Editing by Maria Kiselyova)

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