The President of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) has admitted that Britain's failures to keep its previous promises when bidding for the event means that London's bid is unlikely to receive much support unless they can meet certain criteria.

Diack issued his warning while visiting for the Olympic Stadium for the first time since the Mondo track, which will be used for competition next year, had been laid.

"We have a wonderful stadium of athletics here," the Senegalese told insidethegames as he stood on the start-line of the 100 metres and looked up into the empty stands. 

"We are expecting a full stadium morning and afternoon.·

"I think we will have the most wonderful atmosphere we have ever had at a Championships.

"They [London 2012] have delivered a fantastic Stadium.

"The problem is, 'Are we going to have this continue in the future?'

"That is the big problem."


The future of the Stadium is currently at the centre of a legal dispute following the decision by the Olympic Park Legacy Company (OPLC) to allow West Ham United to take it over following London 2012.

Premier League Tottenham Hotspur, whose joint bid with AEG, which would have involved ripping up the track, are hoping to get a judicial review into the decision.

League One club Leyton Orient, meanwhile, the club closest to the Olympic Park who claim that their future would be put in jeopardy if West Ham move there, have taken their case to the European Union.

Hugh Robertson, Brtain's Sport and Olympics Minister, had told insidethegames exclusively in Durban last month that if the legal disputes are not resolved by the bid deadline of September 1 then London could be forward to withdraw from a contest that also features Doha and an unnamed Spanish city, probably Barcelona, which hosted the 1992 Olympics. 

Lack of clarity over the future of the Stadium last year forced Britain to scrap a bid for the 2015 World Championships, which were awarded instead to Beijing, hosts of the 2008 Olympics.

That was the latest embarrassing chapter in a story of failed bids and broken promises.

A bid for the 2001 World Championships had to be abandoned after inital plans for an athletics track to be included in the redevelopment of Wembley Stadium were scrapped.

London was then awarded the 2005 Championships by IAAF after then Prime Minister Tony Blair had promised that Britain would build a new stadium at Picketts Lock in North London to host them.

But they were taken away from Britain after the Government went back on its promise and were given to Helsinki instead.

"If London are to win they have to come and say that they have the full support of the Government," said Diack.

"They have that and I think they have a good bid.

"[But] if the [legal] problems are continuing you must convince my colleagues on the Council and many of them will say no.

"Remember, we gave London the 2005 World Championships.

"Then we were asked by the [Sports] Minister [Richard Caborn] if we would go to Sheffield and we said, 'No'.

"We need to have the answer to the stadium."


But Sebastian Coe, the chairman of London 2012 and the vice-president of the IAAF, claimed he was confident that a resolution could be found before the IAAF Council votes in Monte Carlo on November 12 on who to award the Championships too.

"The commitment from the Minister and the Mayor [Boris Johnson] is very clear - they want this to happen," Coe told insidethegames.

"That commitment has been made to Lamine.

"The issue is obviously keeping the track and that has been made clear and there is a commitment within that to 2017.

"I think we are in pretty good shape and I think he understands that.

"The Mayor and the Sports Minister both have a very clear view that they want the 2017 World Athletics Championships.

"It is a really smart legacy soon after the Games and we need to live within the commitment we made to world sport that there would be a track here.

"One way or another we will get there."

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