Olympic Highlights
IOC ACTIVITIES
PrEsident
IOC President Thomas Bach joined the NOC of Lithuania and its President, Daina Gudzineviciute, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Lithuanian participation in the Olympic Games Barcelona 1992. The Lithuanian Prime Minister, Saulius Skvernelis, the Presidents of the NOCs of Latvia and Estonia, and representatives of many European NOCs joined the celebrations in Vilnius. On this occasion, President Bach honoured and congratulated the Lithuanian Olympians who competed at the Olympic Games Barcelona 1992.
While in Vilnius, he met with the Lithuanian President, Dalia Grybauskaite. The two leaders discussed a number of issues on sport in Lithuania and Europe, as well as the upcoming Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018.
Opening the “Advancing Women in Leadership Roles in Europe” Forum, organised in Vilnius by the IOC in cooperation with the NOC of Lithuania, President Bach told the delegates that the IOC is committed to gender equality, not only for participation at the Olympic Games, but also in leadership positions in sport.
IOC President Thomas Bach was welcomed by Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the new Federal President of his home country, Germany. The two leaders met in Schloss Bellevue in Berlin, the official residence of the German Federal President. The IOC President presented the work of the IOC and its commitment to the cause of social development and peace through sport by the Olympic Movement. The discussion concentrated on the cooperation between the United Nations and the IOC, the Olympic Refuge Foundation and the situation on the Korean Peninsula. IOC Member Britta Heidemann and IOC Director General Christophe De Kepper accompanied the IOC President during his visit to Berlin.
During a meeting with the Federal Foreign Minister of Germany, Sigmar Gabriel, President Bach discussed the situation on the Korean Peninsula ahead of the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 and other topics of mutual interest.
President Bach welcomed Antonio Espinos, President of the World Karate Federation (WKF), during his visit to the IOC headquarters. They spoke about the preparations for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 and various issues of common interest.
A delegation from the NOC of Morocco, led by Faiçal Rachid Laraichi, NOC President, and Nawal El Moutawakel, IOC Member in Morocco, visited the IOC President. They discussed the current situation of the NOC and the preparations for the next editions of the Olympic Games and Youth Olympic Games.
President Bach met with a delegation from the International Skating Union (ISU), led by ISU President Jan Dijkema and Members of the ISU Council. On this occasion, President Bach congratulated the ISU on its 125th anniversary. They also discussed the preparations for the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018 and other areas of mutual interest.
Members
IOC Vice-President Ugur Erdener has been unanimously re-elected as World Archery President for a fourth four-year term at the Federation’s 2017 Congress in Mexico City. Read the news here.
OTHER OLYMPIC NEWS
In the lead-up to the upcoming Olympic Winter Games, and while the Sochi 2014 investigations are still ongoing, the IOC announced that it has put in place special measures to protect clean athletes, including the re-analysis of stored samples for the Olympic Winter Games Vancouver 2010 and a robust programme of targeted pre-tests. Read the news here.
Building on the success of the first ever NOC Uniform Support Programme for the Olympic Games Rio 2016, the IOC, in collaboration with the World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI), is extending the programme to the upcoming Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018. Thanks to the support of the IOC and the WFSGI, 18 National Olympic Committees from four continents will be provided with free competition clothing for PyeongChang. The NOC Uniform Support Programme was put in place to assist NOCs and athletes that are unable to procure compliant competition uniforms for the Games by providing them outfits that not only meet the IFs’ technical requirements, but also Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter. Read the news here.
The IOC recently hosted an international expert group of surgical leaders and expert physiotherapists from North and South America, Europe and Oceania, specialising in treating and preventing anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries in children. The meeting resulted in an international consensus statement, pointing out the current level of knowledge in this field and setting the stage for future research.
international sportS fEDERations
SUMMER IFS
The International Hockey Federation (FIH) has published new lighting guidance and standards with a view to helping hockey facilities increase sustainability and reduce their environmental impact. Now available at www.fih.ch/facilities, the new guide is written for those considering lighting fields that will not be used for televised events. Fundamental to the development of these guidelines is the FIH’s 10-year Hockey Revolution strategy. The FIH has been making a concerted effort to further align this strategy with the IOC’s Olympic Agenda 2020. Read the news here.
The Wrestling Federation of India, in cooperation with United World Wrestling, organised an official Level 1 Coaching Course at the Northern Regional Centre Sonipat in Haryana, India. The eight-day course attracted more than 80 coaches from across India. The Level 1 Coaching Course teaches coaches of all levels the essential skills necessary to sharpen their skillset, and provides tools for them to develop their wrestling programmes efficiently. The course is also interactive, giving attending coaches the chance to practise sharpening classroom skills on the mats. Read the news here.
The International Swimming Federation (FINA) has announced the 2018 calendar of the second edition of the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series, the latest addition on the aquatic calendar. The distinguishing feature of the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series is that the circuit integrates existing and well-recognised competitions in the sport. More info at www.fina.org.
The International Tennis Federation (ITF) held the 20th ITF Worldwide Coaches Conference in Sofia, Bulgaria, with more than 600 people from 91 different nations in attendance. The event, which is held every two years and is the showpiece of the ITF’s Coach Education Programme, saw a range of presentations, panel discussions and workshops centred on the theme: “Journey of the Player”. Read the news here.
The International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) announced that the 2017 ITTF Star Awards will be held in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 14 December 2017, in conjunction with the Seamaster 2017 ITTF World Tour Grand Finals that will be held from 14 to 17 December. More info at www.ittf.com.
New leaders of the WBSC Baseball and WBSC Softball divisions were elected at the WBSC Congress at the Gaborone International Convention Centre in Botswana’s capital. Italy’s Riccardo Fraccari ran unopposed to win the seat as the Chairman of the WBSC Baseball Division, while Puerto Rico’s Tommy Velazquez was elected as the new Chairman of the WBSC Softball Division. Fraccari is also the current President of the World Baseball Softball Confederation. Read the news here.
NationaL OlympiC COMMITTEES
The NOC of Cape Verde hosted the 34th Seminar for Secretaries General of African NOCs. ANOCA President Lassana Palenfo urged the NOCs to avail themselves of the opportunity to discuss and outline mechanisms that will help achieve the objectives of Vision 2020 of the African Olympic Movement, a futuristic vision that will help consolidate the image of the African Olympic Movement. Read the news here.
The NOCs of Ukraine and Japan signed a Memorandum of Understanding, continuing their cooperation until the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. The MoU was signed by Sergey Bubka, President of the NOC of Ukraine and Tsunekazu Takeda, President of the NOC of Japan. The two sides discussed the deepening cooperation, in particular ahead of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. The Japanese side expressed its readiness to assist in the organisation of training sessions and test competitions in Japan for Ukrainian athletes. Under the agreement, the NOCs will also cooperate in research and development, sports medicine, doping control, and promote the exchange of sports delegations.
At a ceremony at its Olympic House, the NOC of Mongolia honoured the athletes who competed at the Olympic Games Mexico City 1968, where Mongolian wrestlers won the first-ever Olympic medals in the country’s history. In other news from Mongolia, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the NOCs of Mongolia and Ukraine. The MoU was signed by Demchigjav Zagdsuren, President of the NOC of Mongolia, and Sergey Bubka, President of the NOC of Ukraine. Under the agreement, both NOCs will cooperate to promote an active exchange in a number of areas, including training, coaching, research, sports journalism and young athletes.
The Seychelles Olympic and Commonwealth Games Association, in collaboration with the National Olympic Academy of the Seychelles and the Ministry of Education, welcomed Dr Teo-Koh Sock Miang from Singapore for a week-long workshop to support a programme that promotes Olympic ideals with local physical education teachers and Olympic Club Facilitators. Dr Sock is an associate professor in Physical Education and Sports at the Singapore National Institute of Education at the Nanyang Technological University and she is also the Director of the National Olympic Academy of Singapore. During her stay, Dr Sock discussed the programme with the Curriculum Development Officers of the Ministry of Education.
Olympic Day in Sweden welcomed 18,000 participants in the country’s three largest cities. Organised by the Swedish Olympic Committee, it is the sixth year that the event has introduced Olympic sports to youngsters and children around Sweden together with local sport clubs and Olympians. A total of 12,200 children took part in 10 Olympic Day events.
The Turkish Olympic Committee’s Sports Culture and Olympic Education Programme (OLI) kicked off its 2017-18 activities by giving a presentation to approximately 5,000 school children in the Turkish city of İzmir. The multi-activity programme reached six schools in İzmir, with children taking part in a series of interactive audio-visual presentations, prepared with the help of experts. Presentation topics included areas such as Olympic sports, Olympic values, the benefits of sport, the importance of nutrition, fair play and the environment. Read the news here.