A leading athletics official has denied suggestions that he helped cover up Russian doping allegations two years ago, stating he was merely discussing “possible strategies” to downplay negative news stories.
French newspaper Le Monde printed a potentially damning email on Monday that was allegedly sent in 2013 by Nick Davies, the deputy general secretary of the International Association of Athletics Associations.
Davies, who was appointed as right-hand mand to IAAF president Lord Coe this autumn, allegedly sent the email to Papa Massata Diack – the son of disgraced former president Lamine Diack. It appears to show that Davies knew about the governing body covering up Russian doping.
In the email, Davies allegedly discusses the presence of “Russian skeletons in the cupboard” and how to reveal names of potential dopers without affecting the forthcoming 2013 World Championships in Moscow.
“Following our discussion earlier I have already had some thoughts and believe that we need to do the following, in the strict confidence and control within a small circle of senior IAAF staff only. This must be very secret,” reads the email allegedly sent by Davies.
“I need to be able to sit down with the anti-doping department and understand exactly what Russian 'skeletons’ we have still in the cupboard regarding doping.
“I think that the time to have unveiled the various athletes was a long time ago and that now we need to be smart.” The email continues: “We can prepare a special dossier on IAAF testing which will show that one of the reasons why these Russian athletes come up positive is that they get tested a lot.”
The email also appears to show Davies suggesting the use of CSM – a sports marketing firm chaired by Coe – to create an “unofficial PR campaign” to deal with negative stories in the build-up to the 2013 World Championships.
Responding to the publication of the 2013 email, Davies said last night: “As director of IAAF communications it was one of my responsibilities to manage and promote the reputation of the IAAF.
“My email to the IAAF’s then marketing consultant Papa Massata Diack, less than a month before the start of the Moscow World Championships, was brainstorming around media handling strategies to deal with the serious challenges we were facing. No plan was implemented following that email and there is no possibility any media strategy could ever interfere with the conduct of the anti-doping process.”
Russia was last month banned from international athletics after a World Anti-Doping Agency independent commission uncovered a system of state-sponsored doping.
Meanwhile three senior IAAF figures, including Lamine Diack, are currently facing a criminal investigation into claims that they allegedly took bribes to cover up positive doping tests by Russian athletes.
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