Former FIFA President Joao Havelange is not expected to attend the International Olympic Committee session in South Africa next week, his spokesman said Wednesday.
As the IOC looks into corruption allegations against the committee's longest-serving member, spokesman Sergio Martins told The Associated Press that it's ''almost certain'' that Havelange won't make the trip to Durban for the IOC meeting that will decide the host of the 2018 Winter Games.
Martins said the 95-year-old Havelange will stay in Brazil because a family member is scheduled to undergo surgery in the coming days.
Martins did not elaborate, but said Havelange's absence has nothing to do with allegations made in a BBC report that the Brazilian received a $1 million kickback in 1997 when he was FIFA president.
''It's a long trip,'' he said. ''It wouldn't be worth to go all the way there and then come back.''
Martins reiterated that Havelange has not done anything wrong and said the allegations were fabricated by the press.
''Havelange has not been notified of any investigation (by the IOC),'' Martins added.
Although FIFA is not investigating the BBC report accusing Havelange, the IOC decided to take up the matter through its ethics commission, which last year asked the BBC for any evidence of wrongdoing and is assessing what it has received since. The IOC said the commission is in the process of verifying the authenticity of the material sent by the BBC.
Havelange has served the IOC for 47 years, and presided FIFA from 1974-1998 before Sepp Blatter took over.
The BBC also published allegations against the president of the Brazilian football confederation, Ricardo Teixeira, but he is not being investigated because he is not an IOC member.
In its meeting in Durban next Wednesday, the IOC will choose between three candidates for the 2018 Winter Games - Pyeongchang, South Korea; Munich and Annecy, France.
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