Ex-IAAF president’s son, Russian officials get life bans in track corruption scandal

Associated PressJan 7, 2016, 8:25 AM EST

LONDON (AP) — The son of former IAAF president Lamine Diack and two Russian officials were banned from track and field for life on Thursday after an investigation into blackmail, extortion and doping cover-ups.

A fourth official, former IAAF anti-doping director Gabriel Dolle, received a five-year ban from the ethics commission of the International Association of Athletics Federations.

Banned for life were Papa Massata Diack, who worked as an IAAF marketing consultant; former Russian athletics federation head Valentin Balakhnichev, who was also honorary treasurer of the IAAF; and Alexei Melnikov, former head coach of Russia’s race-walking and long-distance running programs.