Australia's Olympic chiefs go to war in bitter, vitriolic election campaign

The vote on Saturday for the Australian Olympic Committee's (AOC) presidency marks the end of one of the most bitterly contested elections, of any type, in Australian history.

The incumbent John Coates has held the role unchallenged for 27 years but this year has been challenged by a former Olympian, hockey player Danni Roche, who quickly managed to garner the support of many high-profile people who wanted to see a fresh face lead the Olympic movement.

The ensuing election campaign - between the politically-savvy Coates who has friends in high places and the political novice Roche who is promising to push a new broom through the AOC - has resulted in a bitter, three-month stoush that has involved many leading political, business and sporting figures across the country.

Roche, who is a board member of the Australian Sports Commission (ASC), announced her bid for the AOC presidency in February, just weeks after Coates had an infamous run-in with Roche's colleague (and ASC chairman) John Wylie at the Nitro Athletics tournament in Melbourne.

In a tense confrontation which shocked those who witnessed it, Coates refused to shake Wylie's hand and called him a liar, as Coates was of the belief that Wylie was trying to unseat him from his long-held position.

Coates has long been of the opinion that the AOC should remain "autonomous" of the ASC - which is the government's arm for distributing funding and guidance for sports in Australia.

But when Roche announced her challenge, Coates felt his suspicions had been confirmed - the ASC was acting to undermine him.

Since that day, a three-month spat has been played out in public - and it has not been an edifying spectacle.

Roche cited concerns with the AOC's allocation of funding and Coates' exorbitant 720,000 Australian dollar salary (530,000 U.S. dollars) for essentially a part-time role as reasons for her bid, while Coates believes the former Hockeyroo is acting on behalf of Wylie so the government-run body can access the AOC's 146 million Australian dollar war chest.

Roche also pointed to smaller-than-expected medal hauls in recent Olympic as evidence that Coates' time is up. Earlier this week, she declared: "From the top down, the AOC needs a new culture and philosophy, one that is focused on sports and athletes" .

Since Sydney hosted the Olympic Games in 2000, when Australia won 58 medals, Australia's results have steadily been in decline; in 2004 Australia won 50 medals; in 2008 it was 46; while in London in 2012 and in Rio in 2016, Australia could manage just 35 and 29 medals respectively.

Roche successfully played the populist card when she declared she would reduce the president's salary from 720,000 to 100,000 Australian dollars (75,000 U.S. dollars) and waive it completely for her first term in office.

She said she would also introduce "term limits" for office holders, review all AOC spending in order to give priority to sports and their athletes and return the AOC presidency to its former, largely honorary role.

Coates was then placed on the back foot by revelations that one of his closest supporters, AOC media director Mike Tancred, was accused of workplace bullying which forced former AOC chief executive Fiona de Jong to quit her role in December.

Tancred has since stepped away from his role at the AOC, while an investigation takes place, but the accusations took their toll on Coates' re-election plans, despite claiming the bullying complaints never reached his office.

Trying to wrest the momentum back from Roche, Coates has vowed to sharpen up his and the AOC's act by extending an olive branch to the ASC with the appointment of new AOC chief executive, Matt Carroll. He recently admitted it was important for the ASC and the AOC to have a strong working relationship to deliver better results for Australian sport.

As the vote has drawn near, Roche has been publicly back by a number of key Australian business figures, including the chairman of Westpac Banking Corp, Lindsay Maxsted and former BHP Billiton chairman Don Argus, who argued that the AOC should be subject to the same "tenure limits" as big business.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has also found himself in the thick of the debate, having overrode his Sports Minister Greg Hunt to reappoint Wylie as the head of the Sports Commission in March. Those close to Coates say the Government's decision to back Wylie sends a clear message - he is their man of choice and that the Olympic boss' days could be numbered.

Meanwhile Coates has wheeled out some big guns to support his campaign, including former Liberal leader John Hewson, respected transport magnate Lindsay Fox and former senior Government Minister, Graham Richardson. Fox said Roche needed to gain experience and "get in line" before challenging someone with Coates' credentials for such a role.

In their final public pitches to the 93 heads of sports who will be voting on Saturday, Roche said she would instill a fresh new culture at the AOC and improve athlete performances with a more efficient funding model with government input, while Coates has vowed to restore Australia's dominance at the Olympic Games strengthening the AOC's independent financing of Olympic sports.

The vote for the AOC's presidency will be a secret ballot, and take place at AOC headquarters in Sydney at 9am on Saturday. It has been an Olympic-sized fight so far - and whoever has the gold medal draped around their neck this weekend will bear the scars of a tumultuous and divisive campaign battle. Endit