Three IAAF boss Seb Coe allies suspended over bribery claims

World athletics governing body, IAAF has accepted the suspension of three of its senior staff over claims they received money from Papa Massata Diack, the son of former president Lamine, to bribe reporters to cover up doping allegations.

The ethics board of the IAAF has provisionally banned deputy director general and former communications boss Nick Davies, his wife Jane Boulter-Davies and a senior member of its medical team,Pierre-Yves Garnier for allegedly taking money to bury news of Russian doping positives in 2013.

“This is pending investigation of potential breaches of the IAAF’s Code of Ethics. The orders for provisional suspension have been imposed in the interests of the integrity of the sport but do not prejudge the outcome of the investigations which are now to follow.

“Each individual is provisionally suspended from any office or position in the IAAF which each presently holds and is precluded from assuming any new office or position for a period of 180 days starting on Friday 10 June 2016, pending investigation of the potential breaches,” the statement from the Ethics Board announcing the suspensions read.

And the IAAF has responded in an announcement acknowledging the decision against close allies of current president, Lord Sebastian Coe.

“There is no greater priority for the IAAF right now than to get to the truth of the allegations that have been made against the sport. These particular facts were made public in December 2015 and relate to allegations of a breach of the IAAF Code of Ethics.

“The IAAF welcomes these investigations by the Ethics Board and investigator Sir Anthony Hooper and thanks them for the difficult and hard work they continue to undertake on behalf of the sport and the organisation.

“As the Ethics Board statement says, each of the persons provisionally suspended ‘enjoys the presumption of innocence until the outcome of the investigation and the determination of disciplinary charges, if any, brought against them’. It is therefore important that we let these investigations take their course without further comment,” the three-paragraph communication said.

The accusations against the trio concern explosive revelations in French publication, Le Monde that detailed the lurid details of how Masata Diack approached the officials in an attempt to hush the media from publishing the adverse results against the already suspended Russia.

Davies is accused of receiving an undisclosed cash payment in 2013 from Massata then a consultant to the IAAF, the circumstances and concealment of which call into question whether the payment was intended to have and/or in fact produced any manipulative effect and the second charge stated he misled an IAAF Ethics Board investigator in respect of the matter.

His wife Boulter-Davies received or had knowledge of receipt by Mr Nick Davies of an undisclosed cash payment in 2013 made by Massata the circumstances and concealment of which raise the question whether the payment was intended to have and/or in fact produced any manipulative effect.

She is also charged with misleading an IAAF Ethics Board investigator in respect of the matter.

Garnier received an undisclosed cash payment in 2013 at the direction of the IAAF’s former President Lamine Diack, the circumstances and non-disclosure of which raise the question whether the payment was intended to have and/or in fact produced any manipulative effect; and retained some part of the sum even when aware of its apparent impropriety.

“The Ethics Board stresses again that the imposition of Orders for Provisional Suspension in this case in no way prejudges and should not be taken to prejudge the outcome of the investigations which will now be carried out by the Board’s appointed investigator, Sir Anthony Hooper.

“Mr Davies, Ms Boulter-Davies and Mr Garnier enjoy the presumption of innocence until the outcome of the investigation and the determination of any disciplinary charges which may follow from the investigations which Sir Anthony Hooper will now carry out,” the Ethics Board statement signed by its chairman Michael Beloff QC said.