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Johannesburg - The SA Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) revealed on Thursday it had backtracked on its decision to withhold funding from track and field athletes.
"As of 15 July 2013, Sascoc decided to voluntarily and magnanimously continue to support athletes on Operation Excellence Programme (Opex) to ensure they are not prejudiced in any way because of ASA's suspension," the Olympic body said in a statement on Thursday.
At the end of June, South Africa's Olympic governing body suspended Athletics SA (ASA) after its members ignored the sanctions placed on its board.
Sascoc also announced at the time all athletes registered with ASA would be removed from the Opex programme, which provides funding and support to a selected number of athletes.
The tier-one athletes on the programme include former Olympic long jump silver medallist Khotso Mokoena, sprinting sensation Anaso Jobodwana and African women's javelin record holder Sunette Viljoen.
Sascoc said it had suspended ASA in terms of Clause 9.3 of its Articles of Association which gave it the power to "suspend, fine and terminate" the membership of any federation which infringed the Sascoc constitution or brought the organisation into disrepute.
However, earlier in June, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) reaffirmed its support for the elected ASA board members, led by embattled president James Evans.
The IAAF refused to recognise the Sascoc-appointed ASA administrator Zola Majavu, tasked with solving the association's financial problems.
Majavu had since vacated his post, little more than two months after he was appointed by Sascoc.
It had come to light on Thursday, Sascoc said, that the IAAF had appointed Cheikh Thiare, executive assistant to IAAF president Lamine Diack, together with IOC member Sam Ramsamy, to resolve the matter of ASA's suspension.
