"It is interesting to learn about such things from the Internet, I can say for myself - I did not refuse," the athlete wrote in the comments under his post on the social network.
Earlier, the President of the Russian Biathlon Union, Vladimir Drachev, said that Babikov refused to perform as part of the men's national team in Hochfilzen.
It was also reported that on the eve of the start of the second stage of the Biathlon World Cup, the Austrian police charged several Russian athletes with alleged anti-doping rule violations during the 2017 World Cup.
Subsequently, Christian Winkler, director of communications for the International Biathlon Union, stated that the organization has no grounds for dismissing Russians.