MOSCOW, November 6. /TASS/. Russia’s track and field athletics federation dismisses any groundless corruption charges, as follows from an official statement published on the federation’s official website.
"The All-Russia Athletic Federation is aware of the investigations the independent commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the ethics commission of the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) have been conducting and it declares its openness to cooperation and integration with the world athletics community in all spheres," the statement runs. "ARAF dismisses any groundless charges against itself. It is going ahead with pro-active work and looks forward to the commissions’ findings. ARAF will invariably act in compliance with international and Russian law and maintain strategic partnership with the IAAF and represent and protect the interests of Russian track and field athletics and Russian athletes."
On Wednesday, French prosecutors said that former IAAF President Lamine Diack, who led the organization in 1999-2015, was accused of getting a one-million-euro bribe from the ARAF. The French authorities claim that Diack and other IAAF functionaries received the money in exchange for consent to conceal information about the doping test results of at least six Russian athletes, some of who participated in the 2012 Summer Olympics.
On Monday, November 9, an independent commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency will publish an account of its investigation into the suspicion Russian athletes had used doping. The inquiry followed claims by Germany’s ARD television channel and the British weekly Sunday Times about 80% of Russian medalists in major tournaments held in 2001-2012 had suspicious doping test results.