Long jumper allegedly faked way into Olympics

MONACO -- A agelong jumper and 2 officials from Albania could look bans aft they were accused of submitting mendacious accusation that helped the jock get a spot astatine the Tokyo Olympics past year.

The Athletics Integrity Unit said Friday it had charged agelong jumper Izmir Smajlaj, Albanian way federation president Gjegj Ruli and the federation's wide caput Nikolin Dionisi with disciplinary offenses implicit a contention held successful Albania successful May 2021, 2 months earlier the Tokyo Olympics. They are each provisionally suspended until the lawsuit is resolved.

Smajlaj was named arsenic the contention victor with a national-record leap of 8.16 meters.

"It is alleged that mendacious accusation was submitted to World Athletics and the AIU successful enactment of this contention result," the AIU said.

Smajlaj's effect wasn't bully capable to suffice for the Olympics outright, but helium got a spot nether the "universality" regularisation that allows countries to nonstop 1 antheral and pistillate jock to the Olympic way events. Those athletes inactive person to use with grounds of their "technical level" and acquisition of planetary events to transportation officials to assistance them a place.

Smajlaj jumped 7.86 meters astatine the Olympics and failed to suffice for the final.

The AIU said successful September that Albania was 1 of 7 countries connected a "competition manipulation ticker list" on with Turkey, Uzbekistan, Moldova, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia.

It's not the archetypal clip Tokyo Olympic qualifiers person allegedly been manipulated. Swimming's satellite governing assemblage FINA said past twelvemonth determination was "nefarious behavior" astir 2 aquatics meets successful Uzbekistan conscionable earlier the Olympics and refused to admit the results. An Indian swimmer who took portion successful 1 of the meets said the results were faked and that helium had been offered a bribe to support quiet.