IOC investigators meet to hear defenses
Posted: Saturday January 23, 1999 12:26 PM
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Executive board member Kevan Gosper: "With the facts I have, I have no reason to believe that was bribery." AP |
LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) -- With the credibility and future of
the IOC at stake, Olympic leaders Saturday began considering
whether to expel members accused in the biggest corruption scandal
in the Games' history.
As the rapidly growing crisis spread to the 2000 Sydney
Olympics, a special IOC panel met under tight security to conclude
its investigation into bribery allegations surrounding Salt Lake
City's winning bid for the 2002 Winter Games.
Meantime, Australia's top IOC official said he sees nothing
"sinister" in the $70,000 inducemens offered by Australia's
Olympics chief to two African delegates the night before Sydney won
the vote for the 2000 games.
"With the facts I have, I have no reason to believe that was
bribery," executive board member Kevan Gosper said.
But Gosper said the IOC will discuss the Australian payments on
Sunday and could order a full-scale investigation of Sydney's bid.
Thirteen members were implicated in the Salt Lake scandal over
cash payments, scholarships, free medical care and other favors.
Two members resigned this week, and IOC president Juan Antonio
Samaranch said as many as seven others face the possibility of
expulsion.
"This is a sad day," said Jacques Rogge, a Belgian member of
the inquiry panel. "But we will do what we have to do."
"There are cases among them that are just unacceptable, brutal
corruption, when simply money was asked for," he said.
The six-man commission will report its findings and
recommendations to the executive board Sunday. The board will then
propose expulsions and announce plans for overhauling the entire
Olympic bidding and selection process.
Dick Pound, the IOC vice president who headed the internal
investigation, declined to comment Saturday as he headed into the
meeting.
In extraordinary scenes, barricades were set up outside the IOC
headquarters on the shores of Lake Geneva. Police and security
guards kept a close watch on the scores of journalists gathered in
front.
IOC officials avoided the media crush by driving into the
underground parking lot and entering the building through a private
entrance.
Lamine Keita, the IOC member from Mali who is among the 13
delegates implicated, arrived in mid-morning to appear before the
panel to defend himself in person. Others appeared throughout the
day.
At a news briefing early Saturday afternoon, Gosper -- who is not
on the inquiry panel -- said the commission would continue working
throughout the day. He said there had been no further resignations.
Citing "due process reasons," Gosper declined to reveal the
names of any of the IOC members who appeared to defend themselves.
He said the executive board Sunday would propose "appropriate
action against any members who have clearly violated the rules of
the IOC."
"The International Olympic Committee will not tolerate
improprieties of any kind," Gosper said. "The IOC will act very
decisively to ensure that all of our members stricly adhere to the
IOC rules and to the oath they all swore to."
"These are fairly difficult times for the IOC," he said. "I
can assure you we will emerge stronger as a result of this event."
The IOC was rocked Friday by revelations that Sydney bidders
made $70,000 inducements for two African votes the night before
they won the Summer Games for 2000 -- by two votes.
Australian Olympic Committee president John Coates released
documents showing annual $5,000 payments to Olympic committees
in Kenya and Uganda from 1994 through 2000.
Coates said the payments were offered to get votes from Kenya's
Charles Mukora and Uganda's Maj. Gen. Francis Nyangweso the night
before the IOC ballot in Monte Carlo on Sept. 22, 1993. The offer
was contingent on Sydney winning the games.
"I thought it was necessary for us to show our commitment to
those NOCs with a view to winning those votes," Coates told the
Sydney Morning Herald. "My view was it might encourage them to
consider their votes for Sydney."
Sydney beat Beijing 45-43 in the secret balloting.
Gosper on Friday described the reported offer as going "beyond
good will" and said, "I can't rule it out that some may call for
the games not to proceed in Sydney. I could see the published
material being viewed as questionable conduct by the candidate
city."
But Gosper, in a clear damage control exercise, attempted to put
a more positive spin on the case Saturday. He said he was now
"comfortable" with the payments after speaking with Coates.
"The information has now been clarified," he said. "While it
has added a new dimension (to the scandal), I don't think there's
anything sinister about that matter."
In Sydney, Coates said he pledged the money to African officials
because he thought Sydney's chances were "slipping away." He said
the payments were within IOC guidelines and were similar to plans
used by bidding competitors from Beijing and Manchester, England.
Gosper said Coates was doing all he could up until the last
minute to secure votes. He said the inducements stemmed from a
legitimate assistance program for African athletes.
"It's not unusual in any bid process for encouragement,
incentives, to be part of the bid as long as they are out in the
open," he said.
Gosper reiterated he will propose that the executive board
reaffirm that the games will go ahead in Sydney and Salt Lake.
He said the executive board may still decide to order an inquiry
into the Sydney bid. If so, Gosper said the panel should be
different from the one that looked into the Salt Lake scandal and
should not be limited to executive board members.
Despite mounting calls from outside the IOC for Samaranch to
resign over the widening scandals, Gosper said the president
retains the full confidence of the executive board and general
membership.
"If ever we need a good president, an experienced president, we
need him now," he said.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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