World Athletics blames employees for 1.7 million dollars taken in ’systematic theft’
World Athletics says it lost more than 1.5 million euros ($1.7 million) to “systematic theft”, which allegedly involved its own employees.
World Athletics said on Thursday, it had handed over detailed case information to “the relevant judicial and legal authorities for criminal investigation” after an audit discovered suspicious activity over several years. It said it terminated the contracts of one employee and a consultant and another employee had already left.
The Monaco-based governing body of track and field didn’t name any of the people it suspects in the theft and didn’t specify which country’s authorities it contacted.
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World Athletics president Sebastian Coe pledged to use “the full force of the law” to recover as much of the money as possible.
“Too many organisations brush incidents like this under the carpet, terminating employment with limited information which allows perpetrators to continue their scams and thefts within new organisations. We are not that type of organisation,” Coe said.
“We have built a strong reputation for good governance, transparency and for defending what is right, even if it is sometimes a little uncomfortable. This is uncomfortable but it is important that we do the right thing.”
Published on Oct 30, 2025