Coe, 59, became boss of the body that governs world athletics last August after eight years as a vice-president.

Since then, the IAAF has come in for heavy criticism, accused of helping cover up systematic doping in Russia.

But Dick Pound, whose report damns IAAF governance, insists he "can't think of anyone better" than Coe to lead it.

"I think it's a fabulous responsibility for the IAAF to seize this opportunity and, under strong leadership, to move forward," said Pound.

"There's an enormous amount of reputational recovery that needs to occur here and I can't think of anyone better than Lord Coe to lead that."

Pound's 89-page report concluded that corruption within the IAAF "cannot be blamed on a small number of miscreants".

It was also particularly scathing of former IAAF president Lamine Diack, who stood down and was replaced by Coe after 16 years in charge.

It concluded the Senegalese was "responsible for organising and enabling the conspiracy and corruption that took place in the IAAF".

The report also claimed the IAAF Council, which included Coe, "could not have been unaware of the extent of doping in athletics".

Coe, a former British MP, was present at Pound's news conference, having insisted on Wednesday there had been no cover-up.

He also said he had no intention of standing down.

Following the report's publication, Coe told BBC Sport that the IAAF would "redouble our efforts, to be clear to people we are not in denial".

He re-emphasised: "My responsibility is to absorb the lessons of the past and to shape the future. The changes I am making will do that. The road back to trust is going to be a long one."

(BBC News)