Today’s Frequently Asked Questions - IAAF

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IAAF President Sebastian Coe (Getty Images)
In our continued effort to be as transparent as possible and to ensure that the public have the same access to the information that the IAAF provides the media, we now share the latest set of 'frequently asked questions' and our answers.
Further to the set of questions and answers we published on Sunday related to enquiries by The Sunday Times (UK) concerning IAAF Council’s vote in April 2015 to award Eugene the 2021 IAAF World Championships, yesterday the BBC (UK) asked IAAF President Sebastian Coe the following questions:

QU: Did you lobby the IAAF and/or Lamine Diack on behalf of Eugene 2021? If so, given your role with Nike and Nike’s close association with Eugene and Tracktown USA, what would you say to those who would consider this to be a conflict of interest?  

AN:  No, I did not lobby anyone on behalf of the Eugene 2021 bid.  After their narrow defeat for the 2019 World Championships I encouraged them to re-enter another bidding cycle as they had a strong bid. My views on all the bids for the 2019 IAAF World Championships (including Eugene) are a matter of record as I was Chair of the Evaluation Commission for those bids. All my interests were, and continue to be, fully declared to the IAAF Ethics Committee and listed at the House of Lords.

QU: Did you ever discuss the Eugene 2021 bid with any Nike employee, official or executives? If so, with whom, and when?
AN: Not unless I was asked if Eugene should rebid, to which I would have replied ‘yes’ given how close they came to winning and the strength of their bid. My views are all a matter of public record as the media covered this extensively at the time.

QU: Did you tell any Nike employee, official or executives in January 2015, that you were in favour of the IAAF World Championships coming to Eugene in 2021? If so, given your position at IAAF, what would you say to those who would consider this advance statement of support to be a conflict of interest? 

AN: I have long believed we should have a World Championship for Athletics in the USA given the strength and size of this market, and have had discussions with USA Track & Field, the USOC (United States Olympic Committee), and cities and states in the USA many times. It is up to those organisations to put forward the proposal of a city, not me.

QU: The BBC has been told by Swedish Athletics that it was assured by you personally, as well as by Lamine Diack, that the 2021 games would only be awarded after a bidding process. Did you say this? If so, how do you then explain what happened?

AN: I would have done as that was my view right up to the council meeting in Beijing when President Diack told the Council of 25 people there were political and financial considerations in terms of the way the funding package came together for Eugene that may not be present again and we should award 2021 to Eugene.
The overwhelming majority of IAAF Council members, from all parts of the globe, (the vote was 23-2) decided to take the world track and field championships into a market where we have never been before. The situation was unusual but not unprecedented. A bid process did not take place when Osaka was awarded the 2007 World Championships. The process for bidding is already being reviewed as part of a wide range of reforms currently being prepared.

QU: The BBC understands that a significant amount of public money, via UK Sport was made available to you to help fund your presidential campaign. In light of the events at IAAF, which some say stands accused of being “worse than Fifa,”do you believe this was good value for money for the UK tax payer? If so, why?

AN: I am very grateful for UK Sport’s assistance. It was offered to me, and to others, as part of UK Sport’s role to promote the UK’s sporting interests internationally by assisting with the appointment of individuals into key international roles. Two thirds of the campaign was privately funded.

QU: UK Sport has confirmed that it provided £63k worth of funding to pay for Lord Coe’s PR team at Vero. Can you confirm how Lord Coe funded the rest of the campaign (e.g. travel and expenses)?

AN: Two thirds of the campaign was privately funded. Subsequent to answering the BBC's questions the IAAF has this afternoon been sent an email from the BBC, which can be downloaded as a pdf from the right-hand-side of this page.

In response to the contents of that email the IAAF has sent the BBC the following comment:

"Much has been written about the unusual but not unprecedented way in which Eugene was awarded the 2021 World Championships.  Seb believed, along with many other council members, that the usual process would be followed and encouraged Eugene to enter the bidding cycling for 2021 which would be decided in November 2016.  He sought clarity from President Diack when asked by Gothenburg about the 2021 bidding process and received assurances that no decision would be made at the April Council meeting so he continued to encourage Gothenburg and Eugene to both put themselves forward for the 2021 bidding cycle."

IAAF
Gidabuday Sports Tourism Foundation is a Non Profit Organization based in Arusha. It's main purpose is to promote, sensitize and enforce education through sports, as well as to search and develop new talents for sports from young people from marginalized communities all over the country.

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