LAUSANNE, November 7, 2017 – The IOC hasofficially suspended the membership of Frankie Fredericks in the wake of chargesof corruption and money-laundering by French authorities.
The IOC’s Executive Board confirmed thesuspension of the 50-year-old member from Namibia considering “the impact onthe reputation of the IOC" following a recommendation from its EthicsCommittee, but maintained that it "recalled the importance of respectingthe principle of the presumption of innocence for any person concerned by acriminal investigation".
The four-time Olympic silver medalistappeared before a judge in Paris last Thursday where he denied any form of "involvementin untoward conduct". Fredericks, who was prominent member of the IOC, ispart of an ongoing investigation by French authorities into the dealings ofPapa Massata Diack, the son of former IAAF president Lamine Diack, including possiblebribes for the awarding of the Olympic Games to Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.
Records uncovered by French newspaper LeMonde in March this year show that Fredericks received a payment of $299,300from Papa Massata Diack on October 2, 2009 - the day Rio was awarded the 2016 Games.The Nambian former sprinter insist that the transactions were legitimate remunerationfor consultancy and promotional services for IAAF for the period of 2007-2011and is in no way connected to the Olympic Games.
Fredericks however insists that thepayments, first revealed by France's Le Monde newspaper in March, were receivedfor promotional services provided between 2007 and 2011 under a contract signedon March 11, 2007, and had nothing to do with the Olympics.
The IAAF had previously suspendedFredericks in July as a part of its internal corruption investigations.
Following the charges, Fredericks hadstepped down from the IOC Evaluation Commission of for the 2024 Olympic Games,along with the Coordination Commission of the Youth Olympic Games Buenos Aires2018. He was absent from the IOC Session in Lausanne and Peru earlier thisyear.
The full statement from the IOC is below:
IOC Statement on IOC Member Mr FrankFredericks
TheIOC Executive Board (EB) met today to discuss the evolution of the situation ofthe IOC Member in Namibia, Mr Frank Fredericks.
Itfollowed a meeting of the IOC Ethics Commission on Monday (6 November 2017),shortly after Mr Frank Fredericks was officially charged by a French judge (3November 2017).
TheIOC Ethics Commission stressed that, considering the current status of thefile, "it is not in a position to make a recommendation on the value ofthe facts". The Commission once again "recalled the importance ofrespecting the principle of the presumption of innocence for any personconcerned by a criminal investigation". Considering "the impact onthe reputation of the IOC", the IOC Ethics Commission nonethelessrecommended suspending Mr Frank Fredericks from all his rights as an IOCMember.
TheIOC EB took note of the recommendation of the IOC Ethics Commission for MrFredericks and reiterated the full commitment of the IOC to cooperate with theFrench judicial authorities, as the IOC has the status of "PartieCivile" in this ongoing procedure.
Aftercareful deliberation, the IOC EB took the following decision:
"Consideringthe gravity and urgency of the situation and its impact on the reputation of theIOC, the IOC EB decides to suspend Mr Frank Fredericks from all the rights,prerogatives and functions deriving from his quality as an IOC Member."
