The Senate Commerce committee, which has not called a hearing but confirmed that its parallel inquiry was continuing, said on Saturday that it had “challenged suggestions that the 2024 bid is a legitimate rationale for stopping or delaying necessary oversight of doping in international competition.”

Mr. Blackmun said he thought a congressional hearing would be “more productive” after international sports officials had signaled how they planned to address the scandal, and that he supported lawmakers’ desire to stay informed. He also said he supported the fight for clean sports, but that his organization prefers a quieter approach.

As the Russian doping scandal was roiling global sports weeks ahead of the Rio Olympics, with sports officials scrambling to respond to the pressure Mr. Tygart and others were applying in calling for extreme sanctions, the American Olympic committee worked to stave off congressional attention.

“We were not saying hearings were inappropriate, but instead that right in front of the Olympic Games is not the right time,” Mr. Blackmun said.

“Travis’s style, I would be lying if I told you it wasn’t having an impact,” he said of Mr. Tygart and the nation’s Olympic bid. “At the end of the day, he’s doing his job, and he’s doing it really well. Would we like him to be a little bit more of a silver-tongued devil? Yes, we would.”

Mr. Tygart shrugged off the critiques of his methods. “It’s not unusual when you’re trying to do the right thing that there are attempts to pressure you to back off these fundamental values,” he said.

Though based mere miles apart, the two prominent officials rarely cross paths in person. If ever, it might happen at the airport, since each travels frequently. They speak by phone every two to three months.