Moses, Olympic champion in 1976 and 1984, might have won three titles had the United States not boycotted Moscow 1980 following the Russian invasion of Afghanistan the previous year.

The 66-year-old, who also lowered the 400m hurdles world record to 47.02 seconds in 1983 and put together a sequence of 122 consecutive victories, said he had opposed the 1980 boycott - which was reciprocated at Los Angeles 1984 - but that he felt the ban recently imposed on Russian and Belarus athletes was justified.

"The boycott in 1980 was political," he told Laureus.

"This is just horrible.

“It hasn’t got a lot to do with politics, it has to do with humanity, the war, the fighting, the children and innocent people getting killed, rockets and missiles, tanks...and it's live on TV, so everyone is aware of it."

Moses, the Emeritus chair of the United States Anti-Doping Agency, also believes that Russia should have been banned from sport much earlier, even before the Ukraine invasion, because of their sports doping violations.

"I was in favour of banning the Russians because of what happened in Sochi in 2014 for really corrupting the integrity of the Olympic Games, via doping," he said.

"I was on the Executive Committee of the World Anti-Doping Agency, and I thought the penalties were too light.

"What they're doing to the entire world right now in Ukraine is exactly the same thing they've done to sport, in my opinion.

"Russia ought to be banned in Paris [2024 Olympic Games]."

Moses recalled a meeting he once had with the Russian President, Vladimir Putin.

"I once sat next to him at table, two seats to my left, and the translator was in between," he said.

"And I spoke to him that entire evening.

"I know how he talked about sports, like it was the holy grail, and how important sport was, and how it was good where the best of everyone's country, regardless of your philosophy can compete together, and whoever wins, wins….

"I realise now it was just propaganda."