FRANKFURT, Germany // IOC President Thomas Bach says former IAAF head Lamine Diack brought his sport “into the abyss” by extorting money from athletes to cover up doping.
In a broad-ranging interview with German sports magazine Kicker, Bach said track and field’s world governing body faces a “rocky road” in its attempt to clean up the sport, but that the new IAAF president, Sebastian Coe, has taken the right initial steps.
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The IAAF has been deeply shaken by allegations of state-sponsored doping in Russia and deep-rooted corruption at the heart of the federation and centered on Diack, who is facing criminal corruption charges in France.
“It is really incomprehensible that the president of an international federation demands money from athletes to manipulate results of doping tests,” Back was quoted as telling Kicker in its Monday edition. “That is really a look into the abyss.”
Bach’s interview coincided with reports that German sportswear company Adidas may terminate its sponsorship deal with IAAF because of the corruption and doping scandals. Adidas said only that it is in “close contact with IAAF to learn more about their reform process.”
Diack, who stepped down as IAAF president last August after 16 years in charge, is a former IOC member. He resigned as an honorary member in November, a day after he was provisionally suspended by the IOC executive board.
Bach said the IAAF under Coe had sent the right signals by suspending the Russian federation, getting in touch with the World Anti-Doping Agency and forming a commission to initiate reforms.
“These were the right and important measures. It is also true that, as Sebastian Coe has said, the IAAF faces a rocky road ahead because of the scale of the problem,” Bach said.
The suspension of the Russian federation means its athletes may not be able to compete at the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in August.
Bach said the IOC’s “zero tolerance” anti-doping policy meant that every athlete, coach, doctor or official involved must be punished, but that “clean athletes have to be protected.”
Bach said the newly elected leadership of the Russian athletics federation is “a strong signal” of Russia’s readiness to step up the cleaning up process.
“The IAAF now has to see what progress has been made and if or when that suspension can be lifted,” Bach said.
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Starfield
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From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
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Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
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The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
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Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Guns N’ Roses’s last gig before Abu Dhabi was in Hong Kong on November 21. We were there – and here’s what they played, and in what order. You were warned.
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Encore:
- Patience
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The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
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Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
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If you go:
The flights: Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin all fly from the UAE to London from Dh2,700 return, including taxes
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Wicked
The biog
Age: 32
Qualifications: Diploma in engineering from TSI Technical Institute, bachelor’s degree in accounting from Dubai’s Al Ghurair University, master’s degree in human resources from Abu Dhabi University, currently third years PHD in strategy of human resources.
Favourite mountain range: The Himalayas
Favourite experience: Two months trekking in Alaska
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Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
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