IAAF Council meets IOC Executive Board, President Samaranch backs IAAF Anti-Doping Campaign
20 August 1999 - Seville – Spain – Following a tradition first established at the first IAAF World Championships in Helsinki in 1983, the IAAF Council met the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee this morning at the City Hall in Seville.
After being greeted by the Mayor of Seville Alfredo Sanchez Monteseirin and the President of Seville 99 Local Organising Committee Luis Navarette, Dr Primo Nebiolo and Juan Antonio Samaranch signed the welcome book before passing to the main meeting room of this beautiful building, built in 1526 to commemorate the wedding of the Spanish king Charles V to Princess Isabel of Portugal.
The IAAF Council and IOC Executive board discussed a number of topics including relations between the IAAF and IOC, preparations for the 2000 Sydney Olympics and the anti-doping campaign. The meeting was conducted in an open, friendly and constructive manner, with President Nebiolo and President Samaranch agreeing to meet again in September to discuss all subjects in greater detail.
During his address, Dr Nebiolo spoke of his satisfaction with the current relationship between the IOC and the IAAF: "I am glad to have this opportunity to meet you all here, which demonstrates the real unity that exists and allows us to exchange ideas and opinions. We can all recall the tremendous popularity of athletics at the 1996 Games in Atlanta and I believe that Sydney will demonstrate again how much our sport appeals to spectators."
President Samaranch thanked the IAAF Council for the invitation it had extended to the IOC Executive Board and for its continuing support of the Olympic Movement. In particular, he backed the IAAF’s hard line stance against doping. "In the last few weeks, some cases of doping have emerged in the media concerning athletics. I cannot understand why the announcements have led to criticism of the sport in the Media. Personally, I believe that athletics deserves to be congratulated because it is fighting doping with facts, not just words. The IAAF should be an example to other federations."
