The Minister for Sport learned with astonishment of the article published yesterday evening in La Libre Belgique entitled “Mondiaux de Tokyo: des primes controversées pour les athlètes belges qui ont signé le code de conduite”.
Immediately afterwards, the Minister today summoned the President of the Ligue Belge Francophone d’Athlétisme (LBFA) to her office. The LBFA is indeed the only athletics federation recognised and subsidised by the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, as the Flemish federation falls under the competence of the Flemish Community and Belgian Athletics is the umbrella structure for both community federations.
Following this meeting, the Minister said she was shocked by the approach reported in the press, which sets a dangerous precedent, decided by the Belgian Athletics board of directors and confirmed by the LBFA President. These new revelations add to growing concern about the management of the Tokyo World Championships and, more broadly, about the functioning of the national federation Belgian Athletics.
On Tuesday, the Minister will ask the General Administration for Sport to suspend payment of the remaining balance of the subsidy granted to the LBFA, until it has been rigorously verified that public funds were in no way used to pay the “loyalty bonuses” mentioned in the article.
Finally, the Minister invites the entire board of directors of Belgian Athletics to engage in a critical reflection on how the recent controversies have been handled, and more generally on the governance and transparency of decision-making within the national federation.
The protection, respect and peace of mind of our athletes remain the Minister's absolute priority.