Olympics: AOC media boss steps down amid bullying allegations

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - The Australian Olympic Committee's (AOC) media and communications director Mike Tancred has stepped down from his role pending an investigation into bullying allegations, the AOC said on Wednesday. "The AOC has this afternoon received notice from Mike Tancred that he is 'standing down from (his) position of AOC Director of Media and Communications pending the outcome of any investigation of the complaint made against (him) by Fiona de Jong,” the AOC said in a statement. Former CEO De Jong, who departed the AOC in December, aired allegations against Tancred in local media over the weekend and complained the organization led by President John Coates had dragged its heels on investigating her formal complaint. Tancred declined to comment on the complaint when contacted by Reuters. The AOC board is to meet in Sydney later on Wednesday. (Reporting by Ian Ransom; Editing by Peter Rutherford)