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The Latest On The IAAF Doping Scandal

Recommended Read France’s national financial prosecutor talks exclusively to Associated Press – reveals much of case has already been verified They’ve already verified that Lamine Diack pocketed “more than €1m” from the alleged cash-for-silence scheme. His son is at the center of the case but hasn’t been arrested as he didn’t return to France when they thought he would.

• Good News, Track Fans: The Telegraph Says IAAF Doping Cover-Up Is Small Fry In The History Of Sporting Scandals
• Bad News, Track Fans: Daley Thompson Says IAAF Corruption Scandal Is Worse Than The One At FIFA “(Diack) has undermined the very premise that sport is built on.”
• UK Athletics Head Says Seb Coe Is The Man To Lead Athletics Out Of This Horrible Scandal “Seb has all the necessary credentials and I’m convinced had he at any time he been aware of corruption within the organisation he would have blown the whistle as that’s what’s in his DNA.”
• Coe Promises Doping Crackdown – “[I’ll do] everything in my power.” “The crowds have to know that what they are watching is genuine.”
• L’Equipe: IAAF Awards Ceremony Cancelled After Lamine Diack Arrest
• MB:  Russian paper claims IAAF covered up 4 positives for Mo Farah
• MB: Alptekin refused a $500,000 bribe to Diack to cover up her positive test from the 2012 Olympics
• MB: Kip Keino says WADA is ‘seriously considering’ banning Kenya from 2016 Olympics We think the odds of this are 0.
• Meanwhile, More Russians Are Getting Busted: Five More Russian Athletes Suspended For Doping Abuse Included on the list is Maria Konovalova (14:38/30:31/2:22:27), who twice has been top three at the Chicago Marathon.
• Russian athletics official confirms ‘zero tolerance’ doping policy If true, Russia will go from a world power in track to someone lucky to win a handful of medals.

LetsRun’s Hero Takes A Stand

Yuki Kawauchi Defies Federation Expectations With Statement Of Intent To Run Own Race In Fukuoka The federation has stupidly said that all men must go out on 2:06:30 pace (a time only 1 Japanese man has ever run). Kawauchi said he’s pumped after finishing 6th in NY, but that he will run his own race and be top 3 in Fukuoka. “If I can make the podium then I know I can compete against the best in the world. If they still don’t put me on the Olympic team for that then there’s nothing I can do about it.”
*LRC Video Showing That Kawauchi Gave It His All To Finish 6th In NYC

Pro Distance News

• Mo Farah To Compete At The Great Edinburgh XC Race On January 9th If he runs, it’ll be the first time he’s run XC since 2011. He was supposed to race last year, but pulled out with illness.
• Fun Read: Phoebe Wright Blogs About What Goes Through The Mind Of An 800 Runner During XC Races “The Start … 800ers do not try to get to the front but accidentally do anyway. This is followed by panic and a ‘HOW THE F DID I GET UP HERE?!'”
  Q&A With Betsy Saina On Joining The Bowerman Track Club After track season she decided to make the switch from the American Distance Project in Colorado Springs.
• Five Takeaways From The Fall Marathon Season For The Olympic Marathon Trials New contenders, interesting debuts and what have the favorites been up to?
• Former NCAA Standouts Natalja Piliusina (Oklahoma State) And Jess Tonn (Stanford) Join Brooks Beasts Track Club Piliusina was the 2013 NCAA 1,500m champ while Tonn was 3rd in the 5,000 at NCAAs last year.

RIP Chariots Of Fire

• Recommended Tribute: Colin Welland, Oscar-Winning Writer Of “Chariots Of Fire,” Dies At 81 The writer of the classic movie about an Olympic sprinter who wouldn’t race on Sunday has died from complications with Alzheimer’s disease.
• RIP Swaziland Athletics President And Former 800 Olympian Themba Makhanya He died after collapsing at work. He was only 45 years old.

Breaking: HUGE Doping News

• MB: Former IAAF President Lamine Diack Accused Of Taking Cash To Cover Up Russian Doping; Is Under Investigation In France Additionally, Habib Cisse, a legal adviser to Diack, is also under investigation while IAAF’s former anti-doping director Gabriel Dolle has been arrested. *IAAF Statement
• IAAF Headquarters In Monaco Raided By French Police In a statement, the IAAF admitted to this and said, they were “fully cooperating with all investigations.”
• Daily Mail: Charges Include Corruption And Money-Laundering Related To Cover-Up For Doper Liliya Shobukhova “This all comes as a result of an IAAF ethics investigation, conducted with the assistance of WADA.”

Some More Post-NYC Tidbits

• Good Read: After DNF And A Double Scotch, NYC’s Oldest Entrant Offers Life Advice 95-year-old Jonathan Mendes dropped out after 16 miles, failing to become the oldest NYC finisher (record is at 93). He says if he’s “still here,” he’ll try again next year.
• Interesting Notes And Stats On The 2015 TCS New York City Marathon Take a guess on who beat out Alana Hadley and Meb Keflezighi as the top tracked runner?
• Missing Runner Found After NYC Marathon A recovering heroin addict from Italy was found aboard a subway train still wearing his racing clothes.
• NY Times Article On The NYC “Almost” Crew; The Runners Who Finished After The 7:30PM Cutoff Read what the experience is like for the runners literally at the back of the pack.
  *MB: Inspirational New York Times article about unofficial NYC finishers Fair warning: Some LRCers may feel the use of the word “inspirational” is trolling.
• Strangers Help Guy In Broken Wheelchair Finish