Here's my GUESS as to what's going on- nothing more than
a guess, and others are welcome to throw crap at it....
For years the German federation and it's powerful
administrators, including the people connected with the
drug-testing lab at Cologne (Köln), have taken the lead in
firing salvos at every country around the world who had
trouble figuring out how to walk the razor's edge between
IAAF/IOC rules and their own national legal maze. You
know, typically having to tread through complex concepts
such as due process, assumption of innocence, beyond a
reasonable doubt, preponderance of the evidence, burden of
proof, double jeopardy, habeas corpus, amicus curiae,
certiorari, caveat emptor, modus operandi, and whatever
else I can remember from 8th grade government class and
Perry Mason reruns.
Maybe the IAAF has ASSUMED, because the Germans have been
their 'deputy enforcers' for so long, that when and if
any cases were to come out of Germany itself, that the
IAAF could quickly impose punishments and the Germans would
be good soldiers and fall into step immediately.
What they have failed to take into account is that
Germany has some similar concepts in its legal system too,
thanks to occupation by the Americans, British, French
and Canadians at the end of WWII (we'll ignore the Soviet
legacy, since the German reunification pretty much adopted
the Western legal model).
Maybe such considerations don't exist to the same extent
in such countries as Spain (Samaranch home) or Italy
(home of recent IAAF head Nebiolo)- a bit more dictatorial
in history over the last few decades with people like
Franco running about?
It is therefore with considerable glee that some Americans (and
maybe Brits too) will observe the current dilemma the Germans
have found themselves in- with Dieter Baumann being granted a court
order, the IAAF threatening "contamination" suspensions, and
other German athletes caught in the middle. Indeed, we've
been down that path before, haven't we?
And it is not restricted after all to "those stupid Americans"
and their silly Constitution.
Professional track has to proceed in a complex environment that
the IAAF cannot dictate or control.
RT
