IAAF stands tough, calls for four-year doping bans

By John Bagratuni Aug 23, 2007, 11:08 GMT

Osaka, Japan - Athletes who commit serious doping offences should be banned for four years instead of two, the world governing athletics body IAAF reaffirmed on Thursday.

The IAAF Congress agreed that the IAAF should push for this change, to apply for serious first-time offenders, at the World Anti- Doping Conference in November in Madrid, where the World Anti-Doping Code is under revision.

'We hope that the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) adopts stronger measures. We hope to define the circumstances and substances by November,' said IAAF president Lamine Diack after the conclusion of the two-day congress.

The IAAF said earlier in a statement that 'we remain convinced that strong penalties are an important cornerstone of an effective anti-doping campaign in general, and in athletics in particular.'

Diack said that the IAAF had the right to go beyond the current two-year ban if considered necessary. He said that offenders are also hit by having to hand back prize money they have won.

The IAAF punished first-time offenders with four-year bans until 1997, but then halved the ban after losing several lawsuits against athletes. WADA, founded in 1999, also imposes two-year bans.

It remains to be seen whether other sports federations will join the IAAF motion in Madrid to for stiffer sanctions even though doping remains a serious problem in athletics and other sports.

Diack dismissed claims from the likes of German anti-doping activist Werner Franke that the upcoming Osaka world championships were drug infested like never before, saying that 'we are doing are best to catch cheaters.'

The IAAF is carrying out more than 1,000 doping tests around the 2,000 athletes set to compete August 25-September 2 in Osaka's Nagain stadium, up from 885 tests at the 2005 edition in Helsinki.

Diack, who was re-elected for a final term as IAAF boss until 2011 on Wednesday, said that the fight against doping was also an important factor in the so-called World Athletics Plan which is to make the sport more attractive again for youngsters.

'The anti-doping measures strengthen our work with children,' Diack said.

'We want to strengthen and improve the sport, go back to the schools. We must ensure that the future generation follows us and that the sport is better sold,' he said.

Diack said that successful championships in Osaka can help in this scheme and that new IAAF vice-presidents Sebastian Coe and Sergey Bubka share these views as potential future presidents.

'They won't come up with new things. Our events must be interesting and entertaining,' Diack said.

Organizing committee head Yohei Kono admitted that ticket sales for the Osaka event were rather slow but along with Diack expected them to pick up if the championships got off to a good start.