Diack's son, 2 Russians banned for life in IAAF scandal

LONDON – The son of former IAAF president Lamine Diack and two Russian officials have been banned from track and field for life after an ethics investigation into extortion and doping cover-ups.

The former director of the IAAF's anti-doping department, Gabriel Dolle, received a five-year ban from the ethics commission of the International Association of Athletics Federations.

Banned for life were Papa Massata Diack, who worked as an IAAF consultant; former Russian athletics federation head Valentin Balakhnichev; and Alexei Melnikov, former head coach of Russia's race-walking and long-distance running programs.

The sanctions centered on the case of Russian marathoner Liliya Shobukhova, who was allegedly extorted out of hundreds of thousands of dollars to avoid a doping ban before the 2012 London Olympics.