IOC to study plagiarism case of Pal Schmitt

LAUSANNE, Switzerland – Olympic officials will examine the plagiarism case that led Pal Schmitt to resign as Hungary's president and consider whether the longtime IOC member should be disciplined.

Schmitt quit as president Monday because of a scandal involving a doctoral dissertation he wrote 20 years ago about the modern Olympics. Last week, his 1992 doctorate was revoked after a university committee found most of his thesis had been copied from the work of two other authors.

Schmitt, who has been an International Olympic Committee member since 1983, could face an ethics inquiry by the IOC and possible sanctions.

"The IOC will ask to receive the reports related to this case, study them and then consider whether any action needs to be taken," the committee said in a statement.

Schmitt, who won team fencing gold medals at the 1968 and 1972 Olympics, ran unsuccessfully for IOC president in 2001. He finished fourth in the election won by Jacques Rogge.

Schmitt served on the policymaking IOC executive board from 1991-99, and was a vice president from 1995-99. He is current chairman of the IOC's sport and environment commission, a post he has held since 1995. Schmitt also previously served as president of national Olympic committee and the World Olympians Association.

The case could wind up before the IOC ethics commission, which would make recommendations to the executive board. Ethics sanctions can include a warning, a suspension or expulsion.

In December, the IOC's longest serving member — 95-year-old Joao Havelange of Brazil — resigned before facing suspension in a decade-old kickback case dating to his days as president of FIFA. Two senior IOC African members received a warning and a reprimand.

Former U.S. Olympic Committee President Sandra Baldwin stepped down as an IOC member in 2002 after admitting she lied about her academic credentials. Four IOC members resigned in 1999 after being implicated in the Salt Lake City bid scandal. Six others were expelled.