IAAF Balks at Early Starts in Seoul

The president of the International Amateur Athletic Federation, the world governing body for track and field, said Thursday in Oslo that the organization will not accept final events during morning hours at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea.

“The IAAF will never allow any finals in the morning just to satisfy American television companies,” Dr. Primo Nebiolo said at a news conference. “According to our reports, the best time should be about 2 to 4 in the afternoon, local time.” That would be past midnight in the United States.

Nebiolo also revealed that the IAAF, despite increasing drug problems in sports, may shorten suspensions for athletes found guilty of drug use.

“We are about to reconsider the lifetime suspension for athletes caught in drug controls,” he said. “Today, most of the sentences are reduced afterward, and we are discussing whether the maximum penalty should be two years, instead.”