IAAF president says sport is still strong despite 'dark days'

PORTLAND — More than 140 countries are represented at this year’s World Indoor Championships, the International Association of Athletics Federations has proudly proclaimed, citing the diverse and wide breadth of athletes competing in front of the crowds bustling inside this city’s convention center.

One country has made more noise than the rest — despite of, or rather because of, its notable absence from the field: Russia, which in November was suspended indefinitely from all international competition, potentially including the upcoming Summer Games, amid a state-sponsored doping program IAAF President Sebastian Coe termed “a shameful wake-up call.”

In what has become an all-too-familiar position for international track and field, the sport again finds itself playing defense, parrying criticism of its methods and oversight while attempting to make necessary changes in advance of Rio de Janeiro.

Yet to call these “challenging days,” as does Coe, suggests that the IAAF has not become accustomed to near-constant allegations of misconduct. In fact, Russia’s absence from the Indoor Championships is akin to adding a log to the growing bonfire of controversy surrounding the sport – a blaze only increased by the proximity of the Olympic Games.

“Our sport is still strong,” Coe said. “That’s not to deny that it’s been through some really challenging, dark days. I don’t think anyone … you’d be surprised if I concluded anything other than that.”

There’s Russia, and all the controversy the country’s departure from the international stage entails. According to internal documents obtained in January by The Associated Press, the IAAF was aware of doping by Russian athletes dating to 2009, and discussed with Russian officials the prospect of covering up the nation’s deception leading into the 2012 Summer Games in London.

That same month, a report released by the World Anti-Doping Agency accused the IAAF of allowing athletes who had been caught using banned substances to continue participating in high-profile events. In February, Nestlé told the IAAF that it would no longer sponsor programs due to concerns that the abundance of ongoing issues could tarnish the company’s image.

A week ago, the international task force commissioned to review Russia’s doping reforms said the country had made strides in rehabilitating its doping guidelines, yet stated there remained “significant work still to be done to satisfy reinstatement conditions” before having the ban lifted in advance of the Rio Games.

“My responsibility is in two key areas, really, but it coalesces around the word ‘trust,’” Coe said. “We’ve got to make sure that people really trust the Federation and also that the clean athletes trust the systems that they’re in, wherein they reside, to make sure that we create opportunities for me that are fair and protective. And that is the simple responsibility that I have, the whole of my council has.”

And American track and field is not without its own share of international intrigue: French prosecutors have launched an investigation into the IAAF’s decision to award the 2021 World Championships to Eugene, Ore., home of the University of Oregon, without going through the typical bidding process.

Even as Portland plays host to the Indoor Championships – and even as the U.S. prepares to bring a wildly talented team to the Rio Games – controversy looms around every corner.

“What we’ve done is focus on the 2016 World Indoor Championships, the Olympic trials and the NCAAs,” said Vin Lananna, the head of Oregon’s powerful track program and the leader of the local organizing committee behind Eugene’s winning bid for the 2021 event.

“We haven’t really spent any time thinking about 2021 or any controversy associated with it. I don’t think we’ve ever shied away from a challenge. I can’t say it hasn’t been a challenge the last four or five months, but I would say we know that President Coe has a long road ahead of him. But I can assure you we’re with him every step of the way.”

Progress has been made, Coe said this week. A task force convened by the IAAF is looking into the reintroduction of clean Russian athletes back into international competition; this task force asked IAAF leaders for more time to “really look at the change and the pace of that change,” said Coe, and will reconvene again in May to issue its conclusions.

Support for track and field remains strong in Europe, particularly in cross-country events. Near-capacity crowds have flocked to the Indoor Championships, though a similar level of attention is lacking in other areas of the United States: Oregon is a bastion of track-and-field support amid the shrugged-shoulder disinterest shown in most corners of the country.

“I think there’s a real appetite in the sport for change and for grasping the situation,” Coe said. “The sport is still a strong sport. We have other things that we need to deal with, and that’s clear. And we are in a process of change. We have to make those changes.”

On this point, at least, Coe – and the IAAF at large – is in line with popular opinion: Drastic changes must be made in order to combat international track and field’s bludgeoned reputation

“The sport needs innovation, it needs rejuvenation,” Lananna said. “I think it needs a reconstruction.”

Meanwhile, the athletes in this week’s competition seem uninterested in the controversy, perhaps as a result of the singular focus needed to reach the Olympic Games – or, in what may be seen as one of track and field’s common responses, a willingness to ignore the issues pervading the sport.

“Maybe I speak for all the athletes,” said Ashton Eaton, an Oregon native and reigning Olympic gold medalist in the decathlon. “I’m not going to comment on it. I don’t care so much. I just care about competing on the track. That’s my take.”