(ATR) Russian Olympic Committee President Leonid Tyagachev is reported to have resigned.
He would be the first to fall after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev called on sports officials to resign in the wake of a disappointing showing at the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games.
"Leonid Tyagachev has offered his resignation," NOC spokesman Gennady Shvets said, according to the Interfax news agency. "This obviously concerns the Russian athletes' performance at the Vancouver Olympic Games."
The former national ski coach served as NOC president since 2001. He was re-elected to a third-four year term last December.
Despite the vote of confidence, Tyagachev faced pressure to resign after Russia finished in 11th place in the overall medal table in Vancouver. Russia won three golds, five silvers and seven bronzes last month. The final blow may have been the ouster of the men's hockey team in the quarterfinals.
Medvedev, reported to be planning a trip to Vancouver for the end of the Games, is said to have cancelled those plans following the disappointing results of the Russian team.
On Monday, Medvedev requested for sports officials to voluntarily quit or he would help them make a decision.
With the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, Russian sports leaders will be under heavy pressure to field a home team which delivers a dominant performance.
Written by Sam Steinberg.
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