IOC Athletes’ Commission elects Chair and Vice-Chairs
After the election of four new members to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes’ Commission (AC) by the athletes competing at Paris 2024, the new-look Commission met today for the first time to elect its Chair and Vice-Chairs.
Emma Terho was re-elected as Chair, and Maja Włoszczowska (Cycling, Poland) and Abhinav Bindra (Shooting, India) were elected as Vice-Chairs. They were all unanimously elected and will hold their positions until the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.
Elected to the AC at PyeongChang 2018, Terho was chosen to lead the Commission after the elections held during Tokyo 2020. She was subsequently re-elected as Chair at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. Terho is a five-time Olympian and former captain of the Finland women's ice hockey team, winning a bronze medal at both the Olympic Winter Games Nagano 1998 and Vancouver 2010.
The AC Chair sits on the IOC Executive Board, representing the athletes’ voice at the highest level of IOC decision-making.
“I would like to thank all the members of the Commission for their renewed confidence and trust,” said Terho.
It has been an honour to lead this very skilled and committed team, and I look forward to continuing our work in the interest of all athletes. We have worked hard to update the IOC AC strategy, and there will continue to be a strong focus on implementing it and putting all the priorities into practice.
Włoszczowska is the new first Vice-Chair of the IOC AC. Elected to the AC during Tokyo 2020, she is a four-time Olympian and a silver medallist at Beijing 2008 and Rio 2016.
Elected as second Vice-Chair, Bindra was appointed as a member of the IOC Athletes’ Commission in 2018. A five-time Olympian and an Olympic champion at Beijing 2008, Bindra is India’s first individual Olympic gold medallist.
Joining the meeting of the AC for the first time were the four new Commission members, elected by their peers at the Olympic Games Paris 2024: Allyson Felix (Athletics, USA), Kim Bui (Gymnastics, Germany), Jessica Fox (Canoe, Australia) and Marcus Daniell (Tennis, New Zealand). They will each serve eight-year terms that will end at the Olympic Games Brisbane 2032. The IOC Executive Board has proposed them to the IOC Session, which will meet on 10 August 2024, for election as IOC Members.
Outgoing members
Włoszczowska replaces Korean table tennis Olympian Seung-min Ryu, who was elected to the IOC AC at the Olympic Games Rio 2016 and then the Vice-Chair position at Tokyo 2020.
Also leaving the Commission is New Zealand’s Sarah Walker, an Olympian in BMX cycling, who has served as second Vice-Chair since being elected at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022.
In December 2021, the IOC Executive Board accepted a proposal by the IOC AC to create a second Vice-Chair position, open to both elected and appointed Commission members, which Walker was the first person to fill.
The IOC will continue to benefit from Walker’s experience and expertise, as she was elected as one of eight new IOC Members, alongside fellow outgoing IOC AC member Aya Medany (Modern Pentathlon, Egypt), at the 142nd IOC Session in Paris in July 2024.
Together with the other members leaving the Commission – Nadin Dawani (Taekwondo, Jordan), Daniel Gyurta (Swimming, Hungary), Britta Heidemann (Fencing, Germany) and Yelena Isinbaeva (Athletics, Russia) – they have provided significant contributions to strengthening the athletes’ voice within the Olympic Movement and to the continued implementation of Olympic Agenda 2020+5.
About the IOC Athletes’ Commission
The IOC Athletes’ Commission plays a central role within the Olympic Movement, representing the global athlete voice within the IOC and beyond. The Commission is composed of a maximum of 23 members, 12 of whom are directly chosen through elections during the Olympic Summer and Winter Games, with a maximum of 11 appointed members to ensure a balance between genders, regions and sports.
There are 15 IOC AC members in the IOC Session representing athletes – this is the same number of representatives from National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and International Federations (IFs).
Additional information about the IOC Athletes’ Commission can be found here.