Zhukov delivered his New Year's message, in which he referenced the Russian doping scandal and the upcoming Winter Olympics and FIFA World Cup, in a post on the ROC's official page on Russian social media site Vkontakte.

"Last year was difficult for Russian sport, but the year has finished and I am very hopeful that 2018 will be much more successful and happy," he said.

"[In 2017] there were a lot of competitions where our athletes performed well, but, of course, there were also times of grief for our sportsmen.

"A lot of our athletes were deprived of their medals.

"All of these doping scandals, of course, did not give optimism to Russian athletes or supporters, but the year has ended, and I am hopeful that 2018 will be a more successful and happy year."

Zhukov claimed that he was looking forward to Russian athletes competing at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, scheduled to take place from February 9 to 25.

He failed, however, to mention that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have banned the ROC from sending athletes to the Games and, instead, Russian athletes at the event will compete under the neutral guise of "Olympic Athlete from Russia".

Zhukov has been suspended as a member of the IOC as a result of the scandal. 

The FIFA World Cup is due to take place in Russia from June 14 to July 15.

Preparations for the World Cup have been rocked by the doping scandal, with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko stepping down from his positions as head of the Russian Football Union and President of the World Cup Local Organising Committee last month to fight his lifetime ban from the Olympic Games.

Zhukov concluded his New Year message by saying: "I really hope that Russian sport will soon return to its deserved advanced position at the top of world sport and that our athletes will be successful and bring joy to our fans."