Image: Photo: APA/Gindl
One day before the general meeting of the Austrian Olympic Committee scheduled for Friday, the poison arrows are flying. Last week, critics of the ÖOC dual seats with President Karl Stoss and Secretary General Peter Mennel submitted a statement of facts to the Vienna public prosecutor’s office through a lawyer, in which the accusation of breach of trust or aiding and abetting in breach of trust was raised. This is about the donation platform “I belive in you”, whose balance sheet loss of at least 415,000 euros was allegedly offset by the ÖOC without the necessary board resolution.
On Wednesday, the ÖOC emailed a statement to its members calling this ad “cowardly and unworthy of sport.” The declaration of solidarity was signed by 24 of the 44 member associations. These include the Austrian Football Association ÖFB, which is Austria’s most important professional association alongside the Austrian Ski Association ÖSV. However, there is a catch. Apparently nobody expected the ÖFB.
In any case, this morning ÖFB General Secretary Thomas Hollerer corrected in an email on behalf of President Klaus Mitterdorfer that the ÖFB was “incorrectly listed as a signatory” in this declaration of solidarity. Due to a lack of knowledge of the matter, no assessment can be made. The “anonymous author” of the statement is asked to “contact the ÖFB in the future and obtain appropriate consent.” The Football Association’s final comment: “Unfortunately, there is currently enormous damage to the sport. It would be nice if bridges could be found so that we can do what is our raison d’être again – working together on the development of sport in Austria.”
The distancing of the ÖFB from the ÖOC leadership is of course grist for the mill of the critics of Stoss and Mennel. Seen in this way, sending the declaration of solidarity was the proverbial shot in the foot and a further indication that the hoped-for push through of the new election will hardly be possible at tomorrow’s general meeting.
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I am Pierce Boyd, a driven and ambitious professional working in the news industry. I have been writing for 24 Hours Worlds for over five years, specializing in sports section coverage. During my tenure at the publication, I have built an impressive portfolio of articles that has earned me a reputation as an experienced journalist and content creator.
