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FIFA president Sepp Blatter is relinquishing his position on the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Blatter, 79, was among a group of IOC members up for re-election for another eight-year term on Monday. But IOC President Thomas Bach said Blatter informed him by letter on July 23 that he would not stand again. Blatter, beset by a corruption scandal at FIFA, is due to be replaced as FIFA president in an election on Feb. 26. Bach said: "[Blatter] does not deem it to be appropriate to stand for re-election for eight years knowing that after seven months his term would come to an end." Blatter, an IOC member since 1999, would have had to retire from his IOC term next year anyway because he turns 80 in March. Blatter will step down as FIFA president in February, a decision he made in June following the bribery scandal that has led to the indictments of top FIFA officials. Blatter himself has not been indicted and denies any wrongdoing. Russian President Vladimir Putin believes Blatter is innocent of corruption, and even deserves a Nobel Prize. Putin, whose country will host the 2018 World Cup, met Blatter before Saturday's preliminary draw for the tournament and said the leader of the football's under-fire world governing body had his respect. The Nobel Peace Center announced last month that it would stop working with FIFA on the joint fair-play "Handshake for Peace" initiative after the corruption allegations that rocked world football.
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