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maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 2 MARCH 2016 20 Sport SPORTTODAY FOOTBALL ATHLETICS UEFA meeting on Friday to discuss Infantino successor UEFA will meet this week to dis- cuss a replacement for general secretary Gianni Infantino who was elected president of world soccer's ruling body FIFA last Fri- day. European football's governing body UEFA said in a statement that its executive committee would be meeting on Friday with Infantino's replacement on the agenda. Theodore Theodoridis, the dep- uty general secretary, would be the logical choice to take over at least on an interim basis. UEFA president Michel Platini has started a six-year ban, a sus- pension he is expected to appeal against at the Court of Arbitra- tion for Sport (CAS). The Swiss-based organisation has not appointed an acting presi- dent in Platini's absence and has voted not to hold an election for a replacement until the French- man's appeal process has been completed. New FIFA President Gianni Infantino arrives at FIFA head- quarters in Zurich, Switzerland FRENCH judges investigating corruption in athletics have ex- tended their inquiry into the conditions under which the 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games were awarded, according to France's Financial Prosecutor. "We are looking at these ele- ments, but at this stage it is a question of verification. Nothing has been proved," said an official from the prosecutor's office. Allegations of corruption in athletics which emerged last year have so far been focussed mainly on events organised by the Inter- national Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), which has no say in the awarding of Olym- pic hosting rights. The French investigation was opened in December in response to media reports that questioned the way the IAAF awarded its 2021 championships to the U.S. City of Eugene. World athletics has also been shaken in recent months by a wider corruption and doping scandal. In response to the news, the International Olympic Commit- tee (IOC) said it would act on any evidence French prosecu- tors provided about how the Rio de Janeiro 2016 and Tokyo 2020 games bid processes were con- ducted. Spokesman Mark Adams said: "When we get evidence we have shown we will act on it. It is an easy thing to talk about, but no one has any evidence... At the moment there is nothing to act on." Separately, the Rio 2016 organ- isers said there was no possibil- ity the vote to award the games to the Brazilian city could have been tainted. "Rio de Janeiro won the right to host the Games because it had the best project. The difference in the votes, 66 to 32 against Ma- drid, excludes any possibility of an election that could have been rigged," Mario Andrada, com- munications director for Rio 2016, told Reuters. The IOC had to clean itself up more than 15 years ago when an investigation ahead of the Salt Lake City 2002 winter Olympics triggered the biggest corruption scandal involving IOC mem- bers. Ten of them resigned or were expelled in connection with bribery and rules governing bids were tightened. In January two top Russian ath- letics officials and the son of for- mer world governing body Presi- dent Lamine Diack were banned from the sport for life for cover- ing up an elite Russian athlete's positive dope test and blackmail- ing her over it. The bans follow last year's World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) independent commis- sion report that found a state- sponsored culture of doping in Russia and prompted the coun- try's suspension from the sport. France extends corruption probe to Olympic bids process Guy Drut holds the logo as he attends the presentation of the Paris candidacy for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris Romanian coach banned for six months for betting on matches ROMANIA'S football federation has banned Marius Sumudica, coach of league leaders FC Astra, for six months for placing bets on several domestic and internation- al matches. Sumudica placed bets between 500 euros and 900 euros on sev- eral matches in the Romanian championship, the Champions League, Europa League as well as Romania's junior teams' matches, according to the federation. He was fined 100,000 lei ($24,340). Sumudica could not be reached for comment, but Astra pub- licly backed their coach, who has helped the team top the standings with 51 points from 26 matches, three points ahead of Dinamo Bu- charest. "It's unfair punishment," Astra's senior official Petre Buduru told local media. "We cannot blame him, we will do our best to defend him." He said the club will appeal the ban. Betting on matches, domestic or anywhere in the world, is prohib- ited in Romania, but is considered to be rife. The federation said in a state- ment the penalty bans Sumudica from all soccer-related functions and events with immediate effect. Astra, who finished fourth last season, competed in this season's Europa League and knocked out English club West Ham United following a 4-3 aggregate victory in the third qualifying round.