• Son of
IAAF president Lamine Diack one of two to leave posts
•
Documentary alleged officials involved in doping cover-up
The Guardian, Owen Gibson, Thursday 11 December 2014
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| Papa Massata Diack is one of two men to have left their posts with the IAAF pending the outcome of an investigation into allegations of a cover-up of systematic doping in Russia. Photograph: Hendrik Schmidt/EPA |
The son of
the IAAF president Lamine Diack is among senior officials from the embattled
athletics governing body who have stepped down from their posts pending the
outcome of an investigation into allegations of institutionalised doping in Russia.
Papa
Massata Diack, an IAAF marketing consultant with exclusive rights to sell
sponsorship in developing regions, has joined Valentin Balakhnichev, president
of the Russian athletics federation and the IAAF’s treasurer, in agreeing to
step down.
The IAAF
issued a statement confirming Papa Massata Diack is suspending his activities
and saying it “appreciates” Balakhnichev’s decision.
It said:
“The IAAF appreciates the gesture of council member Valentin Balakhnichev, who
has been the subject of recent media allegations, who has voluntarily decided
to cease exercising his duties as IAAF treasurer and council member until the
independent IAAF ethics commission’s ongoing investigation has concluded.
“IAAF
marketing consultant Papa Massata Diack has also written to the IAAF confirming
that he will suspend his activities on behalf of the IAAF until the commission
has delivered its final report.”
The Guardian revealed on Thursday that emails suggested Papa Massata Diack
requested a $5m payment – $440,000 of it in cash – from Qatar during the race
to host the 2017 world athletics championships in October 2011. It is not clear
whether the payment was made.
The IAAF
said no contract between it or the state investment entities QSI or Oryx QSI –
or any other Qatari companies – had been signed during that period. An IAAF
spokesman said he had spoken to Papa Massata Diack and he had denied “receiving
any such payment nor ever acting in such a manner on behalf of the IAAF”.
The Qatar
Athletics Federation said it did not recognise the emails and instead focused
on the legitimacy of its recent successful bid to host the 2019 world athletics
championships.
The sport
has been thrown into crisis by allegations of systemic doping among Russian
athletes, claims of a cover-up at the highest levels of the IAAF and new
questions over the conduct of Papa Massata Diack, the 50-year-old son of longstanding
IAAF president Lamine.
It has also
emerged that a list containing the names of 150 athletes, including three British athletes of whom one is a household name, with suspicious blood tests
between 2006 and 2008 had not been used as the basis of a target testing
programme.
It is
understood that the three officials came under pressure to step down at an
executive board meeting on Wednesday and agreed to step aside until the
investigation into the claims had been completed.
German
broadcaster ARD reported that the three-times Chicago Marathon winner Liliya
Shobukhova paid €450,000 to the Russian athletics federation to avoid a doping
ban. She was eventually banned following a failed test and claimed she was
refunded some of the money.
ARD claimed
it had evidence linking the €300,000 refund to Balakhnichev and that Black
Tidings, the Singapore-based company that allegedly made the payment, was owned
by a business partner of Massata Papa Diack.
The French
sports daily L’Equipe has also raised questions about meetings in Moscow hotels
in 2011 between Balakhnichev, the IAAF legal adviser Habib Cissé and Massata
Papa Diack.
In an
interview with L’Equipe on Wednesday Lamine Diack said his son was big enough
to look after himself and would deal with the claims when he returned from a
trip to China to look for sponsors. Diack reaffirmed his faith in the IAAF
ethics commission and said it would deal with the various allegations facing
the sport.
Diack is
due to stand down as president next year after 16 years in the role. Lord Coe
has already declared his candidacy as a potential replacement and he is
expected to be opposed by fellow IAAF vice-president Sergey Bubka.
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