Senegal President Macky Sall, left, alongside Thomas Bach ©IOC/Christophe Moratal

Senegalese President Macky Sall has vowed to improve relations with the sports world following a meeting with International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach in Lausanne.

The President visited the Olympic Museum for lunch as part of a European tour.

He was joined by Senegalese IOC member and National Olympic Committee President Mamadou Diagna Ndiaye and IOC Ethics Commission chair Youssoupha Ndiaye.

"Senegal has shown a strong intention to put sport at the centre of society," said Bach in an IOC statement posted afterwards.

"Through the renovation of numerous sport facilities, the construction of new stadiums and the implementation of programmes for the promotion of Olympic values among the youth of the country, Senegal has acknowledged the role that sports can play."

According to the statement, Bach also acknowledged the "excellent cooperation between the Government and sport authorities in Senegal, highlighting the respect for the autonomy of sports organisations".

Macky Sall, right, pictured signing the IOC's
Macky Sall, right, pictured signing the IOC's "Golden Book" following his meeting with Thomas Bach ©IOC

Sall, in return, was quoted as praising the Agenda 2020 reforms introduced by Bach in 2014 as something that "helps to secure the future of sport and the Olympic Movement".

"My Government, which makes sport one of its priorities, will continue to support initiatives in support of culture, arts and sports to favour the integration of the youth in the nation," Sall added.

The statement made no mention, however, of the ongoing French probe into Senegal's former IOC member and International Association of Athletics Federations President Lamine Diack.

According to allegations published in Le Monde earlier this month, investigators are looking into an alleged $1.5 million (£1.2 million/€1.4 million) payment made by Matlock Capital Group - a British Virgin Islands based holding company linked to Brazilian business magnate Arthur Cesar de Menezes Soares Filho - to Pamodzi Consulting, a firm set-up by Diack's son, Papa.

This payment is said to have been processed on September 29, just three days before the vote in Copenhagen at which Brazilian city Rio de Janeiro was awarded the Olympic and Paralympic Games over Madrid, Tokyo and Chicago. 

Lamine Diack, 83, a voting IOC member at the time, has already resigned as an IOC honorary member after being named in connection with a cabal of Russian officials who allegedly accepted money in return for the covering-up of Russian doping. 

He remains detained in Paris, where he is denying all wrongdoing.