by Larry EderLIke many media around the world, I got up early to listen to the WADA part deux, where Dick Pound was to pull some punches and kick the IAAF leadership in the backside, or so many thought.
Lamine Diack, from both WADA and the French prosecution, is no longer a passive, dodering 82 year old: he orchestrated the depraved corruption, along with his two sons.
Seb Coe, Paula Radcliffe, photo by PhotoRun.net
Pound was most curious. After kicking IAAF all over town in part uno, and providing info on Russia, and other federations issues, many expected him to continue his scorched earth policy on doping issues.
Pound was multi layered this time: Diack is focus of corruption investigation. Russia has been named a doping haven and ARAF not welcome in Rio at this time. The IAAF has been shown as a federation that, due to its make up, had little checks and balances to the Diack family’s extortion attempts. And to the media’s consternation, after dumping on the IAAF for some time, he noted that Seb Coe, the leader that British media loves to hate, is not begging for forgiveness.
I am not sure he should either. I do believe that Seb Coe has to admit that the IAAF, historically screwed the pooch, so to speak. I do not believe that, as cartoonist Callahan noted, “—(put IAAF here)—is personally responsible for the agony of Christ.”
For doping controls to be taken seriously, WADA will have to open both of their eyes and do much the same.
WADA has some issues of its own: now the ARD whistleblower notes that WADA knew about the doping in Russia issues prior to Moscow 2013 and remained silent. Countries like Kenya, Ethiopia, Jamaica, Ukraine, Turkey, Belarus, do not have adequate anti-doping testing in their nations.
CURRENT CASE
MUNICH (GER): Agencies are reporting that former IAAF president Lamine Diack was named responsible for corrupt schemes in regard to doping in Russia at the ruling athletics body in a report Thursday which also said that the council must also have been aware of the wrongdoings. The report, published and presented by an independent commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), also said that “there was an evident lack of political appetite within the IAAF to confront Russia with the full extent of its known and suspected doping activities.” The 89-page report named Russia “a doping haven” and said the IAAF had inadequate governance in place to prevent the corruption that occurred when athletes paid bribes to cover up positive doping tests. IAAF President Sebastian Coe was in attendance at the press conference and French prosecutors too as they are also investigating. Richard Pound said: “There’s no way Coe could have known the extent of what Diack was up to. “I can’t think of anyone better than Coe to lead,” Pound said, adding the case offered “a fantastic opportunity” for the sport to clean up. The IOC said it “will continue to work closely with the new leadership of the IAAF” to protect clean athletes. Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko told the Itar-Tass news agency that his country understands its responsibility and “support(s) all of the conclusions and decisions.” The report also suggested Lamine Diack may have tried to sell his vote for the 2020 Olympics host city in exchange for sponsorship money for the ruling athletics body. But it also said that a leaked IAAF database including suspicious blood values of athletes cannot be used as evidence for doping because it is not complete. Based on reports from agencies.
MONACO (MON): The IAAF thanked in a statement the WADA Independent Commission for all of the hard work that it has put into its report. It also says that IAAF fully acknowledges and accepts the extreme gravity of the Commission’s findings. The weakness of IAAF’s governance which has been exposed allowed individuals at the head of the previous regime at the IAAF to delay the following of normal procedures in certain doping cases. The IAAF will incorporate WADA recommendations into the root and branch governance review which was begun by IAAF President Sebastian Coe immediately he came into office. IAAF President Sebastian Coe commented: “I am extremely grateful to the WADA Independent Commission for its work and for the recommendations it has made. The corruption that it has revealed is totally abhorrent, and a gross betrayal of trust by those involved. Even though each of the impacted doping cases was eventually resolved with lengthy bans for the athletes involved, I recognise that the IAAF still has an enormous task ahead of it to restore public confidence. We cannot change the past, but I am determined that we will learn from it and will not repeat its mistakes. Some of the measures recommended by the Independent Commission already feature in the governance reform programme that I announced on 5 January but we will now urgently consider all of the new recommendations and will incorporate them quickly into that reform programme.”
MONTREAL (CAN): WADA welcomed the second Report issued by WADA’s Independent Commission into doping in international athletics in a release. Specifically, the Report details the Commission’s findings on matters of a criminal nature that were contrary to the World Anti-Doping Code. The Report also explores allegations concerning the “leaked database” belonging to the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), which contains more than 12,000 blood tests from around 5,000 athletes in the years 2001 to 2012. In its findings, the Independent Commission discovered behaviour at the IAAF that began with breaches of anti-doping rules and extended to criminal acts of conspiracy, corruption and bribery within the organization’s leadership. WADA is alarmed that this ultimately allowed doped athletes to evade punishment and sanctioning for a long period of time. The Report found that individuals at the governing body extorted athletes of money in exchange for covering up doping results — actions that ultimately kept athletes in competition that should have been sanctioned for doping. In examining the leaked database – as first reported by German and British media in August 2015 – the Commission confirmed WADA’s view that the database was incomplete; and that, the “suspicious blood values” could not be considered as instances of doping.
UNTERSCHLEISSHEIM (GER): The German Athletics Federation (DLV) will apply for an extraordinary congress of the IAAF in the wake of the doping and corruption scandal, report dpa. DLV President Clemens Prokop said, “The allegations against the IAAF are so severe that they have to be discussed at a meeting of all members.”
COBH (IRL): Sonia O’Sullivan has agreed with Paula Radcliffe stance that the world records should not be reset, report The Irish Times. O’Sullivan, who holds the world best for 2000m, said, “We need to analyse the records that have been set in the past and document any credibility issues by highlighting the uncertainty of some records. “We cannot simply delete history.” The Irish athlete also has some ideas for improving the sport. She mentioned that more team races and international athletics matches could increase spectator interest in the sport.
KINGSTON (JAM): President of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA), Dr Warren Blake, was another to voice disagreement of the proposal by UKA to reset the world records, report The Jamaica Gleaner. Blake said that the proposed measure would “penalise athletes who have legitimately worked hard and excelled.” He added, “If nothing has ever been proven against the people in question, no matter what the suspicions are, you can’t do anything about that. We have to accept those records.”
MOSCOW (RUS): All-Russia Athletics Federation (ARAF) will held on Saturday election congress. Four candidates are going for the president post. Current General Secretary and IAAF Council member Mikhail Butov, 2010 High Jump European Champion Aleksandr Shustov (31), steeple runner Maksim Karamashev (28) and sport minister of Samara region Dmitriy Shlyakhtin.
MOSCOW (RUS): High jump European champion 2010 Aleksandr Shustov prepared for new season and ARAF election at the same time. The 31-year-old Russian is running for federation presidency and didn’t refuse from this chance despite he thinks that it’s impossible to fulfil all IAAF’s demands to All-Russian athletics federation.
