THE auditor-general has called on the Cyprus Sports Organisation (CSO) to keep better track of its subsidies after questionable practices were detected during an audit of the weightlifting federation (CWF).
According to the auditor-general’s report for 2010, CSO had subsidised the weightlifting federation with €536,315 in three years – 2008 to 2010 – and also gave clubs belonging to the federation an additional €12,504 in the same period.
The CWF had been selected by the auditor-general for a more detailed examination during the CSO’s annual audit.
The report said CWF had not applied to be recognised as a federation and was not registered in the sports registry.
The report also noted that currently, the CWF did not fulfil the “legal criteria to be recognised by the CSO” and receive subsidies.
According to the report, the chairman of the CSO said that the matter was being discussed by the board.
The CSO said the auditor-general’s report will be first discussed by the board before commenting.
The auditor-general’s observations did not stop there.
The CWF had presented six clubs as its members with all receiving subsidies, despite, a few at least, not having a weightlifting division and not having declared to the CSO that they were involved in the sport, the auditor’s report said.
The auditor-general also suggested that the number of people taking part in international competitions was “unjustifiably high” – in Belarus in 2010 the team was made up of four people including one athlete; Malta 2010, 11 people out of whom six were athletes; small state games 2009, 10 people but only four athletes; Romania 2009, five including two athletes; Sweden 2009, four with one athlete.
The report also said that the CWF continued to employ a coach, who was also part of the team in international games in 2009, despite the international federation banning him for two years from participating in any event under any capacity, after he was caught doped as an athlete in 2008.
When the international federation found out, they extended the ban until July 2011.
And in 2010 the coach was apparently training an athlete who had applied for an €8,000 subsidy from the CSO.
Asked about it, the CWF presented the CSO with conflicting information regarding the athlete’s coach in 2010 and later declared someone else as being the trainer, the auditor-general said.
But the trainer said he had not had any contact with the particular athlete during the year.
The CSO did not pay the athlete any subsidies between August and October 2010. The auditor-general said the organisation should investigate the matter because the rules also disqualified the athletes working under a punished trainer from receiving any subsidies.
