By Tom Degun

iaaf council_meeting_istanbul_13-03-12March 12 - The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) are set for a new electronic voting system (EVS) following the results of an independent investigation into a high profile incident at their Congress in Daegu last August when the elections had to be farcically be re-run after a series of technical problems.

The chaotic scenes at the Congress initially saw influential Ukrainian Sergey Bubka (pictured front row, far right) sensationally fail to earn re-election as one of the four vice-presidents before a re-vote was ordered and he dramatically managed to hold on to his seat.

Following the incident, IAAF President Lamine Diack (pictured front row centre) appointed the former chairman of the IAAF Juridical Commission Lauri Tarasti to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter.

He was supported by an independent technology expert Alan Peabody, who travelled to Monaco in January 2012 to carry out a full system test with the full cooperation of the company responsible for delivering the EVS in Daegu.

Following the tests, it was concluded in a report from Tarasti that there were two main faults, due to flaws in the EVS, which resulted in the registration of too many votes, as well as, in some cases, votes to the wrong candidates.

The report underlined that the faults listed above were not detected during the EVS rehearsal which took place the day before the elections.

The conclusions were presented to the IAAF Council during the recent 2013 World Indoor Championships in Istanbul.

The IAAF Council approved the report and agreed that a new procedure for the EVS will be introduced and used at the next IAAF Congress in Moscow in 2013.

IAAF electronic_voting_system_Daegu_August_24_2011
"I am very satisfied that we have been able to carry out an independent investigation which concluded that we suffered from a technical breakdown of our EVS in Daegu," Diack said.

"I believe that we have not only uncovered the detailed reasons for this breakdown but can now establish a new procedure which will be credible and transparent."

This new procedure means that the EVS will now be managed by a company with wide references and experience, with penalty for contract breaches.

The IAAF will also clearly formulate its requirements, monitor the activities of the company and assist it where necessary.

One independent expert will be appointed by the IAAF to control and monitor the EVS, acting in cooperation with the company before and during the Congress.

This expert will have full understanding of IAAF rules and relevant computer technology, while rehearsals prior to the Congress will check all possible voting alternatives.

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