Upon appeal to Italy’s National Appeals Commission, John Malago has had his suspension reduced from 16 to 8 months, the Federazione Italiana Nuoto announced last week.
Malago was originally suspended in late September by the Disciplinary Committee of FIN for allegations of double-billing during the 2009 FINA World Championships.
FIN has been under investigation for double-billing 820,000 Euros (approx. $1.02 million USD) for pool maintenance at the Foro Italico that hosted the legendary World-Record-littered 2009 World Championships.
Malago was not implicated in that scandal, and that accusation is not specifically what the suspension was for. Instead, the president of powerhouse rowing club CC Aniene, the club that star swimmer Federica Pellegrini represents, was suspended after he made several public comments disparaging Paolo Barelli, the president of the Italian Swimming Federation, a FINA official, and an Italian Senator.
According to the initial suspension, Malago’s crime was “non-loyalty” and “statements damaging to the reputation” of Barelli, who last year was elected as the president of LEN (the European Federation).