International Weightlifting Federation Auditor Suspended

The last year has seen a push to increase the financial transparency of the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF), an organization that, for example, reportedly collects hundreds of thousands of U.S. dollars annually for doping violation fines and that has traditionally operated with cash payments and little oversight, its critics charge.

 

One of the leaders of the movement to bring IWF finances into line with generally accepted principles of financial management and accounting is European Weightlifting Federation (EWF) General Secretary Marino Ercolani Casadei, who is also a member of the IWF Auditors' Committee. 

Last Tuesday, IWF President Dr. Tamas Ajan sent a letter to Mr. Casadei declaring, “You are hereby instructed to refrain from participating in the activities and meetings of the IWF Auditors’ Committee,” citing a conflict of interest based on what Mr. Casadei describes as “the civil claim initiated by the EWF against IWF in relation to item 15 of the 2008 Balance sheet.”  Dr. Ajan noted that he had “consulted with members of the Executive Board,” prior to making this decision, but questions have been raised about whether or not his decision represents an Executive Board position.

Over the weekend, EWF President Dr. Antonio Urso expressed his full support for Mr. Casadei, and countered the IWF charge, saying, “I am sure Ajan alone decided to exclude someone who, along with other colleagues, has for the first time in the history of the IWF, started to shed some light on the ‘drama’ of the financial management of the International Weightlifting Federation.”

                                                                                                

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