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Papa Massata Diack, whose father (Lamine Diack) created the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), now known as World Athletics will be back on the stand if France has its way. World Athletics is seeking €41.2 million in compensation. But there is no extradition treaty between France and Senegal, where Diack lives. He has already been convicted of crimes to do with money laundering. Diack was also one of several convicted in 2020 for covering up to two dozen Russian doping cases in exchange for Russian sponsorship agreements. Diack was sentenced to five years and fined one million euros ($1.1 million).

However, the Court of Cassation — the highest in France — ruled on Wednesday that the Paris Court of Appeal should review the case.

During the 2020 trial, prosecutors alleged that Diack and his father were involved in corruption that concealed doping cases and delayed or eliminated sanctions on Russian athletes who tested positive for doping. There are other allegations of money laundering, extortion, bribery and more coverups.

Russia was banned from international competition, the elder Diack spent time in prison before being released so that he could die at home. Papa Massata Diack has been in Senegal since.

It is alleged that the younger Diack had extorted the organizers for the 2017 World Athletics Championships to go to Doha. He apparently extorted the organizers again and awarded them the 2019 edition, which went off at a time when Qatar was seeking to host international events like FIFA, and swimming world championships among others, despite the environment being inhospitable to endurance events.

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