Olympics chief Thomas Bach said his organisation should not be compared to the Paralympics governing body which banned Russia over revelations of state-sponsored doping.
Bach said the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which decided against barring Russia from the Rio Games, had a different relationship with its members.
The Paralympics body made headlines on Sunday when it banned Russia from Rio. Its leader Philip Craven voiced disgust at the state-orchestrated doping uncovered by the World Anti-Doping Agency.
"The situation of the IPC (International Paralympics Committee) is different to that of the OIC," Bach told AFP.
"You could compare the relationship between the IPC and the Russia with that between the IOC and weightlifting, for example, where we upheld the decision to exclude the whole Russian delegation from the Olympic Games."
The Paralympics' announcement came after the IOC refused to ban Russia from the Olympics and later rounded on WADA for its handling of the doping case.
But Bach said the IPC was different from the IOC because it administers the sports at the Paralympics, while the IOC operates separately to its individual sports federations.
"Now, sport takes priority but unfortunately in sport there's always the question of doping," he added.
"You always have to take this question into account, you can never leave the issue of doping behind you. It's too important, the danger for sports is too big.
