MOSCOW, April 16 (R-Sport) - Sports-mad Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov said Wednesday he will leave his post as head of the Russian Biathlon Union after the country's athletes failed to hit the Olympic medal target he set for them.
Prokhorov, who also owns the Brooklyn Nets of the NBA, took over as head of Russian biathlon in 2008 amid poor results and doping scandals, and has since provided lavish funding to return Russia to the sport's elite.
However, Russia won only one biathlon gold at February's Sochi Olympics, taking victory in the men's relay. Prokhorov said a year ago that he would resign if there were fewer than two gold medals because that would mean "I'll have failed."
Speaking Wednesday, he said that he and executive director Sergei Kushchenko would not stand again for their posts in Russian Biathlon Union elections scheduled for next month. Candidates must declare by the end of April.
"Sergei and I came into biathlon as a unified team and that's why we've taken the decision to leave together," Prokhorov said. "We think we have completed the main tasks that faced our biathlon. There are no major tasks remaining at the moment."
He suggested, however, that the experience had not been entirely pleasant. "If you asked me now whether I'd take charge of biathlon, knowing that path, then to be honest, I don't know if I'd agree," he said.
Besides his involvement in biathlon and basketball, metals tycoon Prokhorov is also a politician in Russia and came third in the 2012 presidential election won by Vladimir Putin.
UPDATES with quotes
