OCOG and IPC voices

The IKL participants from the OCOGs, the IPC and the IOC made the most of the four-day workshop, interacting and sharing as much as possible during the sessions, the breaks and the dinners. Here is a snapshot of what they had to say about the meetings:

Kevin Martel, Manager for Games Knowledge and Data at Paris 2024, summed up his experience as follows:

“This workshop gave us a great platform to share our ambitions, successes and failures in a safe and caring space. Being challenged and questioned about our choices was also a fantastic opportunity to step back and reflect on how we could have done things differently. Above all, in-person and inter-meeting moments strengthened the link with our IOC, IPC and future OCOGs counterparts, a link that will be essential for efficiently delivering Games-time and post-Games IKL missions.”

Thanos Kostopoulos, Director of Paralympic Integration and Games Learning at Milano Cortina 2026, said about the workshop:

“For Milano Cortina 2026 and me personally, it was a great opportunity to join this workshop, listening and sharing information on various topics with the IOC, IPC, Paris24 and LA28. Whilst our organisation will grow significantly in the next year, we still have much to learn – and it is important to know that we can rely on this great community for that.”

Looking ahead, he added:

“We are very much looking forward to amplifying our experience, learning from each other, sharing insights and best practices, exploring opportunities for collaboration with the future OCOGs, and participating in Paris as observers or secondees.”

Maria Wu Kiskis, Head of IKL at LA28, joined remotely:

“I benefitted immensely from the annual IKL workshop and only wish to have been there in person. I found the ‘Data Governance and IKL positioning in an OCOG’ sessions from the Paris 2024 team (and the discussion that followed) to be insightful and relatable.  The opportunity to get Paris’ perspective of what they learned, what they would have done differently and why, just as we are embarking on the very thing, is both timely and of great benefit.”

Meanwhile, Colleen Wrenn, Chief Paralympic Games Delivery Officer at the IPC, said:

“The IKL workshop was a great opportunity to connect with the OCOGs and to better understand their needs. We at the IPC were particularly excited to share the full scope of our new Future OCOGs Activities and Learning programme. I'd like to thank the IOC for hosting the workshop and for helping drive the productive conversations.”