Papa Massata Diack, the son of disgraced former IAAF President Lamine Diack, has appeared before an investigating judge in Dakar in what could be the first step in the process to extradite him to face trial in France on charges of hiding Russian doping cases in return for cash.

Diack has denied all charges, but the development is nevertheless a significant one.

Senegalese authorities made no official comment about the questioning, which took place yesterday.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and IAAF have been pressurising the Senegalese authorities to hand Diack over to the French.

Lamine Diack, head of the IAAF between 1999 and 2015, is charged with “giving and receiving bribes”, “breach of trust” and “organised money laundering”.

Papa Massata Diack, who handled valuable marketing rights for the IAAF, is accused of playing a “central role” in the network of corruption and is charged with “money laundering”, “giving bribes” and “aiding the receiving of bribes”.

Investigations by the French financial prosecutor’s office in 2018 include allegations that Lamine Diack obtained Russian funds for political campaigns in Senegal, in exchange for the IAAF Anti-Doping arm covering up Russian offences.

The deal also facilitated negotiations with Russian sponsors and broadcasters before the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Moscow in 2013.