Condemned by French justice in September in a major case of corruption against the background of doping by Russian athletes, he arrived in Dakar last Monday night, May 10. He was held in France due to a prosecution in a second case, suspected of having bought votes in the allocation of the Olympic Games in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.
as reported from Dakar, Charlotte idrac
A return without fanfare or trumpets because he did not want a “popular welcome” at the airport. After more than five years of absence, former president of the International Athletics Federation Lamine Diack wants to “first find his family for the Korite celebration” – which marks the end of Ramadan – relatives explain. But it is still available for French justice. “When I went with him to pick up his passport, he was both very happy and moved. Lamine Diack is still under judicial control, he is being prosecuted and he will fight to the end to wash his glory, so it is not yet time to celebrate, even though today is a happy day, reunion “, explains his lawyer, Maître Simon Ndiaye.
A return made possible thanks to the deposit paid by Jaraaf Football Club, of which Lamine Diack had been chairman twice. “We are relieved that he can return to his country. We gave him only a small part of what he gave us. Jaraaf has a land heritage in Dakar and its region that can be valued at billions. And if we have this, it’s thanks to Lamine Diack, because for us, Lamine Diack remains the eternal president. ”
After the family reunification, the “Lamine Diack Support Collective” indicates that a press release is being considered, “when the time is right”.
The 87-year-old Senegalese benefited from the lifting of the ban on leaving French territory on a deposit of EUR 500,000 (approximately 330 million FCFA). Lamine Diack had appealed her sentence to four years in prison, including two closed ones, in the corruption case linked to doping cases in Russia. No date has yet been set for this appeal procedure.
► Read also: The Lamine Diack affair, a symbol of a troubled era for the governance of world sport
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