In Norway, an extraordinary trial began today, Tuesday, and received a huge amount of column space in the country’s press.
Responds to heavy charges Anders Besseberg77, who served as president of the International Biathlon Union IBU from 1992 to 2018.
Besseberg is accused of gross corruption. Besseberg has not commented on the suspected crimes to the media, but has always denied his guilt through his lawyers.
Besseberg is accused, among other things, of accepting bribes from Russian officials. According to the charges, Russian officials have offered him prostitutes, valuable watches, hunting trips and cars from the company that acquired the marketing contracts.
Rodchenkov one of the witnesses
A long list of former and current sports bosses or athletes have been called as witnesses, including the current president of the IBU Olle Dahlin and Secretary General Max Cobb.
One name in particular has been highlighted from the witness list: a Russian Grigori Rodchenkov. The 65-year-old Rodchenkov was plotting Russia’s state-run doping program as the head of Russia’s national anti-doping laboratory.
Since then, he has exposed Russia’s state-run, extensive doping program, written a book on the subject, and fled to the United States. He is said to be at the top of the “Kremlin’s kill list”. Vladimir Putin has issued a warrant for his arrest.
Rodchenkov testifies in court remotely. His current whereabouts are a closely guarded secret.
Rodchenkov has claimed that the doping system in biathlon has been manipulated and sabotaged. Besseberg, on the other hand, questions Rodchenkov’s reliability.
This is how the investigation proceeded
First, in 2017, Besseberg was investigated by the World Anti-Doping Agency Wada. In the same autumn, the Austrian police became interested in the matter. The French Le Monde wrote that Besseberg received a briefcase of money in the summer of 2013 as compensation for concealing the dubious test results of Russian biathletes.
In 2019, the Austrian police transferred part of the investigation to the Norwegian police. Since then, gross corruption has been investigated in Norway, while possible doping fraud has been investigated in Austria. The matter has also been investigated by the IBU’s own commission.
Now, in the trial, Besseberg is accused of corruption, but not of doping ambiguities. Instead, the Austrian police’s investigation into Besseberg’s suspected actions in doping circles is still ongoing.
Six weeks have been reserved for the trial. Legal expert Gunnar Holm Ringen said that the prosecutor’s task in corruption cases is difficult. The prosecutor must be able to prove that the services received by Besseberg are specifically corruption and that he has realized his actions.
– The condition is that he has received these offers or benefits in connection with his position, not as an individual. The question is also whether they constitute a so-called “improper” advantage.
This is Norway’s first criminal case concerning possible corruption in sports organizations. In Norway, the majority of corruption trials have ended in a final verdict.
Gross corruption is usually sentenced to ten years in prison in Norway.
Aggravating allegations
English lawyer Jonathan Taylor, who investigated the matter on behalf of the IBU, has said that the information obtained from Besseberg’s wiretapping is very incriminating. Among other things, Taylor claims that Besseberg tried to help the Russians in their doping fight against Wada.
Taylor paints a picture of weak IBU governance, which Besseberg spun to his heart’s content. He sought new presidency terms for himself without restrictions.
– We know that Besseberg favored Russia’s interests more than what is expected from a sports director who believes that Russia was an important nation for sports. He went much further. Why? That’s for others to decide, Taylor charges.
Norway’s TV2 published a documentary about Besseberg at the start of the trial. TV2’s expert Mads Kaggestad considers the trial to be completely exceptional.
– This is something we have not seen in Norway. A problem that drastically crosses the boundaries of sports. This is about corruption at the international level.
– This is the most serious case in Norwegian sports history.
World Championship medalist in orienteering, after his career worked in various management positions in Norwegian orienteering, athletics and biathlon Erlend Slokvik believes that the Besseberg case has a considerable reputational damage to Norwegian sports.
– If the accusations are true, it is a terrible case.
Slokvik describes Besseberg as authoritarian, blue-eyed, rude and aggressive. He criticized himself for not understanding to ask Besseberg critical questions about his activities.
Slokvik also confirms that there were plenty of stories about Besseberg’s female adventures in Russia in the IBU. According to Slokvik, some of it was rumours, some of Besseberg’s spread.
– I have considered him naive. That’s been my opinion all along. He was in the system too long and then the gifts he received grew without him thinking about it. I may be wrong, that he has actually been intelligent, but I found him naive.
Sources: NRK, VG, TV2, Nettavinen