IAAF President Lord Coe IslandStats.com There is no "systemic corruption" within the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), the governing body claimed today as they prepared to face more allegations with the publication later this week of the second part of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Independent Commission report.
The IAAF claim that the cover-ups of doping failures were carried out only by a small minority of figures which contrast with the commitment of the "dedicated" majority.
The defense by the IAAF is contained within a 30-page document, sent to WADA on Friday (January 8) and to insidethegames today.
It is the IAAF's first detailed response to the WADA Independent Commission report published last November.
As well as allegations of sytemic and state-supported doping within Russian athletics, it was claimed that the IAAF may have delayed the outcome of up to eight cases and suffered from "systemic failures...that prevent or diminish the possibility of an effective anti-doping programme".
Former IAAF President Lamine Diack has since been arrested as part of a French police investigation amid allegations he was involved in an extortion plot in which money was accepted in return for tests involving Russian athletes being covered up.
Consultant Papa Massata Diack, the son of Diack, was banned for life from the sport by the IAAF Ethics Commission last week for his role in the plot.
Former IAAF treasurer and All-Russia Athletic Federation (ARAF) President Valentin Balakhnichev was also banned, along with long distance running and race-walking coach Alexei Melnikov.
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