IAAF speaks of remarkable Olympic competition, plays down empty seats

Rio de Janeiro (dpa) - The head of athletics ruling body IAAF, Sebastian Coe, on Saturday called the Olympic competition in his sport remarkable as he shrugged off various issues highlighted by an array of empty seats at the Games‘ showcase sport."This has been a remarkable week in Rio. The athletes enthralled and entertained, they captured the global imagination," Coe told a news conference at the Olympic Stadium ahead of the final session."We learned our sport is alive and incredibly strong, and with a strong appetite for public consumption."Looking at the sparse crowds, Coe spoke of "a new world how our sport is consumed," stating that IAAF website user numbers had doubled compared to London 2012, and the number of mobile users even increased by 361 per cent.But with the athletics stadium an isolated venue outside the Olympic Park in Rio, Coe also said that in the future the IAAF will seek a bigger saying in the selection of venues and choice of timetables at major events."We want to see full stadiums, but that doesn‘t reflect the way the championship has been absorbed by many more people than before," Coe said.Asked about memorable performances in Rio, Coe named British distance runner Mo Farah as well as "having seen Usain Bolt‘s last Olympic performances and South Africa‘s Wayde van Niekerk bettering Michael Johnson‘s 400m world record."