Diack Resigns IOC Post, Bubka Feels the Pain

(ATR) Lamine Diack relinquishes honorary IOC membership, avoiding a vote to expel.

The resignation came a day after the IOC Executive Board spent 90 minutes to suspend the former president of track and field’s governing body. Among those voting to sanction Diack was Sergey Bubka, IAAF vice president and Nawal El Moutawakel, another IAAF council member who also sits on the IOC EB.

"(You) can’t imagine how you would feel in this situation – when it’s your sport’s leader, when it’s your sport in this situation," Bubka told Around the Rings in Lausanne.

"I can say no one would feel well. I sat together with Nawal [El Moutawakel] and we talked to each other. Felt so bad."

Diack, who lead the federation from 1999 until August, is under investigation for criminal charges by French authorities. Police raided the federation’s Monaco headquarters last week searching for evidence that Diack and others at the IAAF may have received bribes to keep secret positive drug tests for Russian athletes.

Repercussions have come rapidly since the World Anti-Doping Agency Independent Commission released a scathing report Monday detailing allegations of state-run systematic doping in Russian track and field and the failure of IAAF to sufficiently do its part to prevent the transgressions.

Bubka is representing the beleaguered sports federation at the annual SportAccord International Federations Forum this week in Lausanne. President Sebastian Coe remains in Monaco at IAAF headquarters to deal with the crisis.

The IAAF Council will hold an emergency teleconference meeting on Friday. On the table will be a response to the allegations from the Russian athletics federation, which has been given 72 hours to offer an explanation.

"We need to have all the information, we need to assess, to see clearly who has violated the rules," said Bubka, the former pole vault champion, who was defeated by Coe in his bid for IAAF president in August.

The IAAF Council could vote to suspend the federation, a move which could prevent Russian athletes from competing in Rio de Janeiro at the 2016 Olympics. Bubka says that is a reality which may come to pass.

"The athletes, the entourage of the athletes, the coaches. Everyone should pay the price. And we must be very careful with the athletes – not to punish athletes who are not guilty, which will be a huge job to see, a very difficult decision.

"We need to discuss with our colleagues, with our president, to get the full picture," says Bubka.

But Bubka says no mercy should be extended to the guilty.

"No excuses, strong sanctions," Bubka continued. "This is a real test of the future of our sport. Our leadership should be wise, smart and strong."

"We will work together in this difficult time, but we must be united," he said. "We must be very, very strong to rebuild the credibility."

The turmoil rocking the IAAF started Monday with the release of a 330 page report from an independent commission of the World Anti Doping Agency chaired by IOC member Richard Pound.

The report alleges the destruction of 1,400 doping samples, intimidation by federal security police and a host of issues with the Moscow drug testing lab. This week WADA revoked the accreditation for the lab.

The IAAF Executive Council will convene in person Nov. 26-27 in Monaco. The annual IAAF Gala that was to held afterwards has been cancelled.

Coe has vowed to save his sport as it faces arguably its most daunting battle.

"We will do whatever it takes to protect the clean athletes and rebuild trust in our sport," Coe said. "The IAAF will continue to offer the police authorities our full co-operation into their ongoing investigation."

Written by Brian Pinelli in Lausanne .

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