– They spoke openly that they had paid Besseberg somewhere between 200,000 and 300,000 US dollars in a single payment. This is how the Russian doping whistleblower Grigory Rodchenkov put it when he was interviewed for the investigative report on Besseberg. On Tuesday, the Russian will testify in the trial against Anders Besseberg. But this is no ordinary witness. Since fleeing Russia in 2015, he has lived in hiding in a secret location in the United States. Only a few people know his whereabouts. The reason is that the Russian became world famous for having revealed the methods behind the extensive doping cheat in the Sochi Olympics in 2014. Before revealing the secret, he fled Russia, where he feared for his life. But Rodchenkov has another connection to this trial. Grigorij Rodtschenkov in an interview with news in 2018. He wore a Finnish cap and sunglasses to hide his appearance, as he has done in several interviews. Photo: Lars Thomas Nordby Økokrim has been tight-lipped about what the Russian doping whistleblower will be questioned about from an unknown location in the USA. Besseberg’s defenders, for their part, are very critical of Rodtchekov testifying at all. – From our side, we do not understand his testimony in any other way than to continue to accuse Besseberg of having received cash, said Besseberg’s defender Christian B. Hjort earlier in the trial. Also before the weekend, he wondered what relevance Rodchenkov has as a witness in the corruption case against Anders Besseberg, as neither doping nor money payments to Besseberg from Russians are part of the indictment. When asked directly by Besseberg’s defenders about why Rodtschenkov should testify, prosecutor Marianne Djupesland in Økokrim replied that he should testify about Besseberg’s relationship with Russian biathletes. What Rodchenkov himself has told about Besseberg and Russian peaks has, among other things, been about a diplomatic suitcase and several hundred thousand dollars. Russians dismiss story – Tikhonov said the type of suitcase they used could contain around $300,000. Kravtsov disagreed, stating that this type could hold $400,000. This is how Rodtskhenkov remembers the meeting in the spring of 2013 in the investigation report, which was commissioned by the International Biathlon Union (IBU). The former head of the doping laboratory in Moscow claims he witnessed two central figures in the trial against Besseberg, the Russian sports stars Aleksander Kravtsov and Aleksander Tikhonov, discussing what they had paid Anders Besseberg. – Tikhonov said that Besseberg was “under his control”, which I understood to mean that Tikhonov had influence over Mr Besseberg, Rodchenkov is quoted as saying in the investigation report. MIGHTY RUSSIAN: Aleksander Tikhonov was formerly biathlon president and vice-president of the International Biathlon Federation. Photo: NTB But Aleksander Tikhonov dismisses Rodchenkov’s story in an interview with news. – Rodchenkov? I have heard about it, but I have not seen anything and cannot confirm that it was given, says Tikhonov to news. He adds that there are no documents to support Rodtschenkov’s story: – What does Anders himself say? Has he received it? Besseberg himself has denied that he has ever accepted money from Russians: Besseberg interviewed at home on 12 April 2018. It was two days after the police action against him. – I have not received a krone, a euro or a dollar from any Russian, Besseberg told news, two days after the police action against him in April 2018. Besseberg’s defenders have repeatedly attacked how they believe the prosecution is painting a picture that Besseberg was smeared by the Russians. The trial against Anders Besseberg is in its fifth week. Here is Besseberg in a photo from 2017. Photo: Berit Roald / NTB scanpix – For Anders Besseberg, there is a significant difference between being accused and convicted of having sold his soul, or being judged for having accepted a good, said Deer in the court. Rodchenkov is now scheduled to testify on Tuesday afternoon under strict security on a transfer from the United States. Fear of tracking where the testimony takes place is the reason, according to what was disclosed in court before the weekend Critical When the police investigation against Anders Besseberg became known in April 2018, the accusations first revolved around the concealment of positive doping tests. There were also accusations that the former biathlon president should have received money to defend the interests of Russian biathlon. Rodtschenkov, in an interview with news, had made accusations that the International Biathlon Union manipulated and sabotaged “suspicious blood tests”. These accusations are not part of the indictment against Besseberg, which concerns gross corruption. Besseberg pleads not guilty following the indictment. In the indictment, the receipt of goods and services from Russians is central. Økokrim has several times received critical remarks from the defenders in the trial, when they have believed that the questioning of witnesses has not been relevant to the charges against Besseberg. DISCUSSING: Besseberg’s defender Christian B. Hjort and prosecutor Marianne Djupesland in Økokrim. Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB Anders Besseberg himself has been very critical of the credibility of Rodtschenkov. Jonathan Taylor, who interviewed Rodchenkov in the work on the investigative report on Besseberg, for his part assessed the Russian as credible. – I spent a lot of time with Rodchenkov and didn’t just eat his words. I cross-examined him and tested him all the time. And because he was able to back up what he said and provide evidence from data, it meant that we were able to assess whether the evidence was credible, says Taylor to news. However, in working on the investigative report, they found no further evidence of monetary payments to Besseberg. But the Taylor Commission gave the police access to the evidence they had collected in their work. Under witness protection For Richard McLaren too, Rodchenkov became a witness he trusted in the work on his devastating report on the extensive Russian doping cheat in 2016. The Canadian is one of the few who know about Rodchenkov’s secret life as the Russian was a key witness for him. Grigorij Rodchenkov, photographed here in 2016. Photo: NYT – He is under witness protection. I can’t say more without risking his own safety, says McLaren to news at the Play The Game conference in Trondheim. When he met Rodchenkov himself, he realized what an isolated life the Russian whistleblower lives. – He has no contact with the outside world, says McLaren.
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Allegation about a Russian money bag creates Besseberg conflict – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
