The Evening Standard reports that athletics officials have launched an investigation into serious lapses in security at the World Championships in Paris, which could damage Paris’ bid to host the 2012 Summer Olympic Games.
There have been reports of unauthorized visitors gaining access to the athletes’ village, reports the newspaper.
Istvan Gyulai, General Secretary of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) said, “I have heard that security has become less effective as the days have progressed. On some occasions it has not been tight enough and some people have found their way into the village without the proper accreditation. This is not desirable and of great concern. It should not happen at any time. We will investigate and prepare a full report on the situation”.
According to the Evening Standard the IAAF has given Paris a mixed report so far on the event. The city got praise for the atmosphere in the Stade de France, which would be the centrepoint of the 2012 bid. But the athletes’ village – student accommodation – has come under fire and the amount of traffic on the roads surrounding the stadium has been a “headache”.
IAAF vice president Helmut Digel told Standard Sport, “these have been the best ever championships with 500,000 spectators in total, a great atmosphere, superb TV ratings and advertising”.
But he added, “there have been a few organizational problems such as the traffic around the stadium”.
On the plus side Paris has been complying with the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) strict rules governing bid cities and the only sign that the city is bidding for the 2012 Games is on a poster lining the bridge that leads to the Stade de France which says, “the race to 2012 starts here”. The IOC says that Paris has been playing by the rules.
Instead Paris is spreading the word about its bid by inviting IOC President Jacques Rogge and several committee members to the championships.
