Coe ‘warned London 2017 team of fears rivals were giving out brown envelopes’
— ATHLETICS HIT BY SHOCK NEW ALLEGATIONS
LORD COE’S position as the head of world athletics will come under further scrutiny amid claims he warned UK Athletics officials of rumours that brown envelopes full of cash were being handed out by rivals ahead of the vote for the 2017 World Championships.
Ed Warner, the UKA chairman, revealed earlier this month that a ‘very senior IAAF person’ made the allegation of corruption ahead of the vote in Monaco in November 2011 but never revealed their identity.
Now Sportsmail has spoken to two witnesses — both of whom were linked to the London 2017 bid team — who recall Coe walking into the London bid office at the Fairmont Hotel in Monaco to warn them of possible bribes being offered in exchange for votes.
It is understood that Coe does not deny having a conversation with Warner in Monaco but he did not regard it as being significant.
At the time of the alleged conversation with Warner, Coe was the IAAF’s vice- president. When asked to respond to the claims, a spokesperson for Coe said: ‘Sebastian Coe denies knowing of bribes being offered or received linked to the 2017 World Championships.
‘As he and Ed Warner discussed on Radio 5 Live’s Sportsweek, there was rumour piled upon rumour, as is often the case on these occasions.’
The spokesperson was also asked to clarify remarks Coe made on that BBC radio programme and at the Parliamentary select committee last month, where he was answering questions about the doping scandal in his sport.
When asked if he had ever heard ‘ any chat around the trackside’ about bribes or from anyone who said ‘I was offered money’, Coe said he had not.
The spokesperson said: ‘He has been consistent in asserting that he does not know of anyone who has been “offered money”.’
Speaking on Sportsweek on January 17, Coe indicated to presenter Garry Richardson that he had not heard about the allegations made by Warner, nor did he know the identity of the IAAF official Warner mentioned.
The spokesperson said: ‘ His response was that he hadn’t been told the identity of the IAAF official. Garry went on to ask if Ed would call Seb after the show to tell him the name of the person he was referring to.’
London won the 2017 Championships ahead of Doha, with the Qataris subsequently awarded the 2019 event. The two bids by Qatar’s capital for the 2017 and 2019 championships have now been referred to the IAAF ethics commission, an independent judicial body, following the allegations of ‘brown envelopes’.
Warner has said he will not confirm the identity of the ‘very senior IAAF person’ until he has spoken to the ethics commission. But sources contacted by Sportsmail recalled Coe’s comment on the night before the vote, and the subsequent response from Warner and his bid team.
‘Ed just said “Stuff ’em, we’re not going to play that game”,’ recalled one member of the bid team.
On Tuesday, MPs asked Warner directly if Coe, who has consistently denied any real knowledge of corruption in his sport, was among those who told him about the rumours of bribery ahead of the vote in November 2011.
Warner replied: ‘It could have been any number of people,’ then added it would be ‘inappropriate’ to make it public before he had testified to the ethics commission.
On the same Sportsweek programme, Warner, who is also chairman of London 2017, said: ‘On the night before the bid a very senior person in the IAAF hierarchy told me and my bid team that they understood certain members of the IAAF council were being called upstairs one by one to a hotel suite to be given a brown envelope.
‘It was quite shocking to hear it and my message to our bid team was: “Just ignore that. We are London, we do it the British way. We have no brown envelopes — even if we did, we’d have nothing to stuff into them. Let’s focus on our lobbying.”
‘It seemed incredible to me at the time and so I dismissed it but subsequently we have heard that Papa Diack, Lamine Diack’s son, apparently was asking for $5million (£3.5m) from Qatar to support their bid — they were our competitors for the 2017 Championships.’
Richardson then asked Warner (below): ‘Is the someone who told you that information about brown envelopes still working for the IAAF, yes or no?’
Warner replied: ‘Yes, yes they are. Who’s to say they knew that? It was a rumour of a rumour.’
Richardson then said: ‘Hang on, I thought you said they had seen it?’
Warner said: ‘No, no, they said they understood they knew what was going on. You had this rumour-filled atmosphere. People get very excitable. At the time I put it all to one side and I hope it wasn’t true but, if it was true, let’s find it out.
‘Our bid cost around £360,000 — it was a cheap bid, well executed — but if others don’t play the same way let’s find out.’ Richardson then turned to Coe and asked: ‘Have you heard this story before? Do you know who this IAAF official is?’
Coe replied: ‘No, I haven’t. But Ed is right. Whenever you’re in a bidding process … every sport has their rumour, rumour piled upon rumour. The issue is … the French
prosecutors are looking at this. I have implemented a review of our financial, marketing and sponsorship arrangements within the IAAF so, if anything comes out of that nature, then, clearly, all those bids will be called in.’
Richardson then asked Warner: ‘You’ll call Seb and tell him the person’s name?’
Warner replied: ‘Seb and I talk all the time, Garry.’
Richardson then asked: ‘ But you’ll tell Seb the person’s name who told you that rumour? Warner replied: ‘Yes, of course.’ ‘And you will follow it up how, Seb Coe?’ asked Richardson.
Coe replied: ‘In the way it’s being done at the moment within the organisation. We have a review of the financial situation, marketing and our sponsorship arrangements.’
When Coe appeared before the DCMS select committee last month, Scottish Nationalist MP John Nicolson asked him about bribery.
‘Have you ever been offered a bribe?’ said Nicolson, to which Coe replied ‘No’.
‘Do you know anybody who has been offered a bribe?’ Nicolson then asked. Coe said ‘No’.
‘Never heard any chat around the trackside or subsequently from anybody who has ever said, “I was offered some money”?’ enquired Nicolson, to which Coe again replied ‘No’.
Having admitted to MPs that ‘in hindsight’ he probably should have reported the rumours of brown envelopes sooner than he did, Warner now finds his own position as non-executive chairman of the London 2017 board under scrutiny. A board meeting, which was scheduled for today, has been postponed.
If and when it takes place, Warner could argue — having been told by the then IAAF vicepresident and council member of the rumours of bribery — that he assumed the matter would be investigated.
We do it the British way... no bribery, said Warner