Federations Roundup - Handball Allegations; Blatter Apology; Weightlifting Ban

Handball Responds to Corruption Allegations

In a statement provided exclusively to Around the Rings, the International Handball Federation says it's working "in close cooperation" with an investigation into corruption allegations leveled at IHF president Hassan Moustafa.

Following a Thursday meeting of the IHF Executive Committee, the federation offered an explanation of the events of the past week.

According to the statement, the IHF was visited Nov. 9 by authorities in order to investigate allegations about the possible involvement of Moustafa in irregularities concerning the TV rights contract for the period 2009-2013.

"The main concern of the police were the documents related to the awarding of the TV rights to UFA," explained the IHF.

"The office supported the police officers to get all the information required in hard and soft copies."

IHF added: "The TV contract was concluded through a transparent tender process where several offers were presented in sealed envelopes addressed to the IHF marketing company and collected by the IHF marketing employees. The sealed envelopes, bearing the IHF stamp showing the date and time of reception, were kept sealed until the date of the Executive Committee meeting. The sealed envelopes were presented by the IHF marketing employee to the Executive Committee during their 1st meeting in June on the fringes of the 2009 IHF Congress in Egypt. The envelopes were opened by the Executive Committee during this meeting where among 4 submitted offers, UFA’s offer was selected with the best financial conditions."

German authorities say Moustafa improperly netted more than $800,000 from the deal.

Prosecutors said they will review the data collected before deciding whether to press charges.

"The IHF is communicating in close cooperation with the authorities in order to guarantee the availability of all relevant documents and provide adequate answers to any questions that may arise during the investigation process," said Thursday's statement.

"We, the IHF, strongly support this investigation in order to finalize these unpleasant allegations and to continue the successful path of the handball development."

Blatter Apologizes

FIFA president Sepp Blatter says he’s sorry for suggesting that football does not have problems with on-field racism – and that any incidents could be dealt with by a simple handshake.

"It hurts and I am still hurting because I couldn't envisage such a reaction," he told the BBC on Friday.

"When you have done something which was not totally correct, I can only say I am sorry for all those people affected by my declarations."

Blatter, 75, made headlines worldwide on Wednesday by downplaying racism on the pitch in two separate television interviews.

The controversial comments sparked outrage among high-profile Premier League players including England defender Rio Ferdinand and Blackburn Rovers striker Jason Roberts as well as former professional footballers Stan Collymore and Mark Bright, all of whom called for the Swiss to resign from the presidency of world football's governing body.

Premier League chief Richard Scudamore and Professional Footballers' Association CEO Gordon Taylor also joined in the chorus of condemnation.

"I cannot resign," Blatter toldthe BBC on Friday. "Why should I?

"When you are faced with a problem you have to face the problem. To leave would be totally unfair and not compatible with my fighting spirit, my character, my energy."

Also in the interview, Blatter reiterated FIFA’s commitment to rooting out racism at all levels of the game.

"Zerotolerance," he said. "This was a good lesson for me as well."

IOC Puzzles Play the Game

The IOC offers a "friendly but unclear response" to Play the Game’s proposal for good governance in sport.

Play the Game reports on its website the IOC is neither rejecting nor accepting the call to organize an international conference so as to prepare aglobal code of governance for sport.

Director general Christophe de Kepper wrote that the IOC is actively promoting good governance in sport by working closely with international federations and other sports bodies.

Play the Game proposed the code at its conference in October.

"It says yes without saying yes and no without saying no, so we could also take the answer as a silent support for the ideas and aims that Play the Game 2011 proposed," Play the Game international director Jens Sejer Andersen said of the IOC’s letter.

"But while it remains a riddle what the IOC really thinks about this, we cannot wait for this riddle to be solved. So we will look for other partners and occasions to strengthen the efforts against corruption in sport."

Play the Game was founded by the Danish Institute for Sport Studies to promote discourse on sport, especially regarding ethical matters.

Olympic Champion Fails Drug Test, Proclaims Innocence

Beijing gold medalist in weightlifting Liao Hui will not be able to defend his title in London after failing a doping test.

The International Weightlifting Federation banned the 69kg division champion Friday after he tested positive for thebanned drug boldebolin in an out-of-competition check on Sept. 2, 2010. The ban lasts until Sept. 30, 2014.

"I’m deeply in love with what I am doing. I’ve not used any stimulating drugs in my career," Liao told Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

"In order to protect my rights and prove my innocence, I have submitted an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport."

According to Chinese media reports, Liao will also be stripped of his 2010 world championship. He set a world record in the clean and jerk and total weight category there.

"Since Liao is now to bring the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, we will wait and see what to do next, " added a statement from the Chinese Weightlifting Association.

Written by Ed Hula III, Matthew Grayson and Tencent's Norman Li

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