Olympic Highlights 02/04/2024
IOC
PRESIDENT
IOC President Thomas Bach addressed the ONOC General Assembly in Fiji on Tuesday 26 March, where he was welcomed by the President of Oceania National Olympic Committees (ONOC), Robin Mitchell, who is also an IOC Executive Board member.
Addressing representatives of the 17 NOCs from across the region and speaking about digitalisation, the President said that, in the future, digitalisation will be the "key challenge and opportunity facing the world of sport because it will change the world".
He highlighted two particular work streams: esports and egames; and artificial intelligence. “With regard to esports and egames, we cannot ignore the 3 billion people who are familiar with these games and are often not familiar anymore with sport and physical activity. We want to make an effort in this respect, whilst always adhering to our values of non-violence, non-discrimination, respect and tolerance. We have to approach this community and win them over,” he said. He informed the General Assembly that he had asked the IOC Esports Commission to study the creation of Olympic Esports Games.
Turning to artificial intelligence, President Bach said: “AI has the potential to change sport in every respect; from the training of athletes, to judging and refereeing, to the fight against doping, to the experience of spectators and solidarity in sport. There is huge potential, along with risks which have to be addressed. The Olympic Movement has to harness its benefits and understand its risks.”
He informed the Assembly that, next month, the IOC will present a vision on AI’s potential for sport, and he encouraged the representatives to dedicate a conference to this topic ahead of next year’s ONOC General Assembly, as a follow-up to and implementation of this vision for AI in sport.
Finally, he looked ahead to the Olympic Games Paris 2024, telling the Assembly that they would be “great Games”. He told the representatives: “They will be great Games because, from the beginning, Paris has done what you are doing – it has embraced the message and the method and tools of Olympic Agenda: planning from the beginning in a sustainable way, in an inclusive way, in an urban way. And on top of this, the IOC has ensured that there will be an equal number of quota places for male and female athletes at the Olympic Games for the first time in our history.”
During the meeting, President Bach presented the IOC Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Champion Award for Oceania to Olympian Patrick Johnson. The award recognises the outstanding work of inspiring changemakers who are committed to using their platform to promote the advancement of gender equality, diversity and inclusion in and through sport. Johnson’s work has been pivotal in ensuring that programmes foster the participation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island women in Olympic sports.
Also at the General Assembly with President Bach and ONOC President Mitchell were IOC First Vice-President John Coates, IOC Members Baklai Temengil and Auvita Rapilla, IOC Member and IOC Athletes’ Commission member Sarah Walker, and IOC Member and International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons.
Honorary Members
IOC Honorary Member Richard Kevan Gosper has been honoured as the outgoing Chair of the Organisation of Sport Federations of Oceania (OSFO). He received a special award in recognition of his contribution and dedication to the region over the years. The ceremony took place during the OSFO General Assembly held in Nadi, Fiji.
Commissions
Highlighting strong foundations, exceptional work quality and extensive engagement with stakeholders, the IOC’s Coordination Commission hailed the important progress being made by the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee during its second annual meeting this week. Speaking afterwards, the IOC Coordination Commission Chair, Kirsty Coventry, said: "Brisbane 2032 has made important and measured progress over the past year. The development of their organisational strategy and Games plan gives us great confidence, providing a clear roadmap to achieve truly impactful Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2032.” Read the full news release here.
Other Olympic news
The IOC has announced a global licensing agreement with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products (WBDGCP) that will see beloved Looney Tunes characters featured in a collection of official Olympic-licensed products. The agreement forms part of the IOC’s global licensing programme – a direct result of Olympic Agenda 2020+5 – which aims to strengthen and promote the Olympic brand, not only during the Olympic Games, but between the Games as well. Read the full news release here.
The qualification and points system for the Olympic Qualifier Series has been unveiled, with athletes competing for points to secure over 150 quota places for Olympic Games Paris 2024. All 464 participants have now been confirmed, achieving gender parity on the field of play and broad international representation from over 120 National Federations across all continents. Full details here.
Following the success of the initial briefing held in Milan last year, Media Rights-Holders (MRHs) convened in Cortina d'Ampezzo last week for the OBS World Broadcaster Meeting (WBM) for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.The WBM was attended by more than 200 participants from across the world, including 108 MRH personnel, representing a total of 28 organisations; representatives from local municipalities; the IOC; the International Paralympic Committee; the Italian NOC; and Worldwide Olympic Partner Alibaba. With less than two years to go until the Games, this second meeting proved an invaluable opportunity for face-to-face interactions, site visits to the mountain venues, and in-depth discussions on the ongoing progress and operational plans for the broadcast of the Games. Read the full news release here.
Beyond reaching gender parity for athletes competing at the Olympic Games Paris 2024, the IOC is also aiming to increase the number of female coaches through its Women in Sport High-Performance (WISH) pathway. With six participants of the programme already confirmed as coaches in Paris, Elizabeth Pike, WISH Project Director, explains how the programme is breaking down barriers to fix the system. Only 13 per cent of coaches at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 were women. Read more here.
While coaching at an athletics club in Denmark, former track and field athlete Martin Johansen noticed how the gender imbalance among staff affected the progress of some female athletes. Now retired and with a master’s degree in elite sports, Martin joined the IOC Young Leaders Programme to address this issue with his new project, CoachEquity, which focuses on creating strong mentor groups designed to bring more female coaches into high-performance athletics. More details about his project can be found here.
International federations
Summer Ifs
International Basketball Federation (FIBA)
The exact timing of both Paris 2024 Olympic basketball tournaments was announced this week. The four remaining places in the men's tournament are reserved for the winners of each of the four 2024 FIBA Olympic qualifying tournaments, which are taking place in Latvia, Greece, Puerto Rico and Spain from 2 to 7 July. Full details, including the full schedule, here.
International Gymnastics Federation (FIG)
After the last of five qualifying events in the 2023 and 2024 Trampoline World Cup series, the FIG has confirmed the individual quota places for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 that were obtained at these series. The 2024 African Championships on 10 and 11 May in Bizerte, Tunisia, will offer the last opportunity for trampoline athletes to qualify for Paris 2024. Read the FIG website article here.
Winter Ifs
World Curling Federation (WCF)
The LGT World Women’s Curling Championship 2025 will be held in Uijeongbu, Korea, from 15 to 23 March 2025. This will be the second time Korea has hosted the World Women’s Curling Championship, the first being in 2009 in Gangneung. The 2025 edition will also be the opportunity to earn the final qualifying points for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. By the end of the event, seven countries will have qualified for the women’s competition in Milano Cortina, joining hosts, Italy. The final two Olympic berths will be decided at the Olympic Qualification Event, scheduled for December 2025. Full details here.
National Olympic Committees
Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC)
The HOC’s Athletes’ Commission recently honoured the athletes who have qualified for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and have completed their university studies. The ceremony took place in the HOC’s Amphitheatre, where HOC President and IOC Member Spyros Capralos and HOC Athletes’ Commission Chair Voula Kozompoli congratulated the athletes and highlighted the important topic of elite level athletes’ dual careers. Over the last two years, the HOC through its Athletes’ Commission has launched two projects aimed at raising awareness, guiding and substantially supporting its athletes in relation to their dual careers. The event was conducted in the context of the European Union (EU)-funded project to promote dual careers, “Olympic Committees for Dual Career – OCDC”. Full details about the projects and the list of athletes honoured can be found here.
Lithuanian NOC (LNOC)
Last week marked the end of this year’s first sports administration training organised by the LNOC, with the support of Olympic Solidarity. Two dozen sports administrators improved their knowledge and skills by working with experienced trainers on the topics of time management, communication, personal branding and social media. The participants also learnt about LNOC activities, the work at the Olympic Games and the opportunities offered by the IOC's Athlete365 programme. Together with Olympic Solidarity, the LNOC organises three free training courses on sports administration a year. At the moment, training for coaches is underway, while an advanced management course will be held in August. Full info here.
Moroccan NOC (CNOM)
The CNOM Olympic Academy recently held a videoconference on the theme of “Sport and Artificial Intelligence”. The CNOM also organised an Olympic visit for students at the Sports Careers Institute in the city of Kénitra. More details on www.cnom.org.ma.
Oman Olympic Committee (OOC)
The OOC General Assembly took place recently under the chairmanship of OOC President Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed Al Zubair. The agenda included the annual report, with details about the administrative situation and the committee’s activities for 2023; an overview of the internal events and programmes approved by the Board of Directors to be held this year, such as Olympic Day; the approved programmes of the Oman Olympic Academy; and a range of sports and social events. More details here.
Organising Committees for the Olympic Games
Paris 2024
On 23 March, the Paris 2024 Volunteer Convention brought together 40,000 volunteers. The event was held at Paris La Défense Arena in Nanterre, a competition venue for the Paris 2024 Games. During the event, volunteers had the opportunity to spend a festive day exploring the Games and discovering their uniform. Over the next few weeks, the volunteers will begin their online training, before collecting their accreditations and uniforms in May, and getting to know the venue where they will be working from July onwards. Full news release here.
The official stamp of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 was unveiled recently. The stamp will go on sale from 5 April, and 800,000 will be issued. Colourful, dynamic and bold, it makes use of the Neo Art Deco graphic blocks of the Paris 2024 visual identity. The official stamp features two of the iconic places that have made Paris famous the world over – the Eiffel Tower and the River Seine – along with sporting elements such as athletics tracks and bouncing balls. It has a special hot foil finish to help shine a spotlight on Paris and sport. Full press release here.
Some 460 local businesses from the social and solidarity economy (ESS) – small- and medium-sized companies that balance economic, social and environmental objectives – have been contracted by Paris 2024 so far, actively contributing to the organisation of the Games in areas such as construction, catering, furniture and laundry services. Joining forces with the Yunus Centre for Social Business and the not-for-profit organisation Les Canaux, the Paris 2024 Organising Committee developed an ESS 2024 programme to facilitate access to the Olympic and Paralympic Games-related contracts for such entrepreneurs, as well as guidance, training and relevant resources. Full details here.
Furthermore, the Paris 2024 Board of Directors confirmed, subject to the approval of the IPC Governing Board, a change of location for the Main Press Centre for the Paralympic Games. Previously planned to be housed in temporary facilities adjacent to the Olympic Aquatics Centre, it will now be located within “Pulse”, the Paris 2024 headquarters in Saint-Denis. Details here.
Recognised Organisations
South American Sports Organisation (ODESUR)
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, recently hosted the 36th ODESUR general assembly and the first South American Sports Forum. The personalities present included ODESUR President and IOC Member Camilo Perez Lopez Moreira; Brazilian NOC President and ODESUR Vice-President Paulo Wanderley; IOC Vice-President Nicole Hoevertsz; Panam Sports President and IOC Member Neven Ilic; and IOC honorary member and Uruguayan NOC President Julio César Maglione. The agenda included the President’s report, those of various ODESUR commissions and one by the Organising Committee for the South American Games Santa Fe 2026, plus a presentation on the joint IOC/UN Sport for Climate Action Framework and one by WADA. For its part, the first South American Sports Forum, brought together over 100 participants from ODESUR-member NOCs from 21 to 23 March. The subjects addressed included high-level athletes, marketing, gender equality, safe sport and sustainable development. More details on www.odesur.org.
Fédération Internationale Cinéma Télévision Sportifs (FICTS)
The FICTS institutional bodies (Board of Directors, Members of the four International Commissions, Auditors and Ambassadors) have approved the Guidelines 2024-2027 in agreement with Milano Cortina 2026 for the promotion of the Olympic values and sports culture. For the first half of 2024, the following events will be held. From 8 to 10 May, in Milan, the “Trofei di Milano Cortina 2026” final will involve 42,000 students from 70 schools in Lombardy and Veneto. From 6 to 8 June, the cities of Verona, Treviso and Venice will host the “GenerAZIONE2026 - Sport powered by youth and education” project, included in the “Education Gen26” programme of the Milano Cortina 2026 Foundation. And from 24 to 26 June, exhibitions, screenings and meetings on Olympic topics will be held in Paris in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute. More info at www.sportmoviestv.com.
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)
WADA has published Guidelines for implementing the Technical Document for Sport Specific Analysis (TDSSA Guidelines). The TDSSA is a mandatory Level 2 document that must be implemented by all Anti-Doping Organisations (ADOs) that are Signatories to the World Anti-Doping Code. More info here.