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IAAF: Finances improving

Monaco - Track and field's governing body said Friday it has stabilized its financial situation and is promising to ensure strict financial control in the coming years.

The IAAF council, which is meeting in Monaco this weekend, said in a statement that cost cuttings and the arrival of new sources of revenues will ensure that the IAAF reserves in 2015 would be higher than at the end of 2011.

The council said "the IAAF reserves in the long term would be in excess of the minimum level agreed of $50 million for the next 5 years."

The IAAF said in August the budget deficit for 2010, which had earlier been forecast at $16 million, was around $9 million thanks to cuts in spending and a deal sealed with electronics giant Samsung to sponsor the Diamond League meets.

That deal is said to be worth around $3 million per year for the next two years, with the option of extending for a third year.

The council "was pleased to see that as a result of a combination of cost cutting and the arrival of new revenue streams such as Samsung's title sponsorship of the IAAF Diamond League, the financial situation of the IAAF has been stabilized," IAAF said.

The IAAF's finances had been hit by the economic crisis and a drop in television revenue when a long-term deal with the European Broadcasting Union ended at the end of 2009. The IAAF subsequently signed a significantly smaller deal with Stockholm-based IEC.

The body said on Friday it recently sealed TV deals for its competitions with Norway, Sweden, Finland, Greece, Czech Republic, Portugal, Slovenia and Cyprus.

The council also announced that the Gateshead Diamond League meet will be moved to Birmingham starting next year and decided that athletes from the Netherlands Antilles will now represent the Netherlands.

"Netherlands Antilles has ceased to exist as a separate territory (...) and IAAF membership will drop from 213 to 212," the governing body said.

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