Olympic Highlights 18/09/2023
IOC
PRESIDENT
On the road to qualification for Paris 2024, more than a dozen street skateboarding Olympians were welcomed to Olympic House by IOC President and Olympic champion Thomas Bach. They were in Lausanne for the World Skate Tour (WST) Lausanne Street 2023, an Olympic qualifying event. Among them were Olympic champion Momiji Nishiya and Olympic medallists Rayssa Leal, Funa Nakayama and Jagger Eaton. All of the athletes were presented with their OLY diploma and pin by President Bach, having signed the Olympians Wall. The President also spoke with them and listened to their views before wishing them good luck on their journey to the Olympic Games Paris 2024.
Earlier, the IOC President met the World Skate President, Sabatino Aracu. The main topic of discussion was the preparations for the skateboarding competitions at the Olympic Games Paris 2024. The President then welcomed the members of the World Skate Board, who were meeting at Olympic House.
This week, the President had meetings with IOC Vice-President Ser Miang Ng and IOC Members Uğur Erdener and Danka Bartekova, with whom he spoke about a wide range of Olympic topics, including the upcoming IOC Session in Mumbai and the Olympic Games Paris 2024.
The IOC President met the President of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), Witold Bańka, who was accompanied by WADA Director General Olivier Niggli. They discussed the excellent collaboration between their organisations to strengthen the fight against doping and protect clean athletes.
Also at Olympic House, President Bach welcomed Peruvian NOC President Renzo Vitto Fabrizio Manyari Velazco and Secretary General Eva Jenny Martinez Diaz. The Peruvian athletes’ preparations for the upcoming editions of the Olympic Games were discussed during the courtesy meeting.
President Bach also welcomed the Board of the Slovak Olympic and Sports Committee, led by its President Anton Siekel and its Vice-President, IOC Member Danka Bartekova. During the meeting, the IOC President congratulated the NOC on the 30th anniversary of its recognition by the IOC, and wished it all the best in its preparations for the upcoming Olympic Games.
Among the Slovak delegation were NOC Vice-President Peter Korčok and Executive Board member Matej Tóth, who both took part in several consecutive editions of the Olympic Games in racewalking – Sydney 2000, Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008 for Korčok; and Athens 2004, Beijing 2008, London 2012, Rio 2016 (with a gold medal) and Tokyo 2020 for Tóth. They were both presented with a diploma and OLY pin by President Bach, before signing the Olympians Wall.
President Thomas Bach welcomed International Canoe Federation (ICF) President Thomas Konietzko. Together they discussed the preparations for the Olympic Games Paris 2024.
The President also received World Aquatics President Husain Al-Musallam. During their meeting, they addressed a number of Olympic topics, including the preparations for the aquatics competitions at the Olympic Games Paris 2024.
In Berlin, the IOC President met presidents and secretaries general from National Sports Federations of the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) of which he is the Honorary President. They discussed the upcoming Olympic Games Paris 2024 and the geopolitical situation.
TOP PARTNERS
The IOC, with support from Worldwide Olympic Partner Samsung, has announced its new Let’s Move Street Challenge, a unique online competition inviting BMX, breaking and skateboarding enthusiasts to showcase their best sporting moves and creative talent. The victors will be crowned Let’s Move Street Challenge winners and receive a special, behind-the-scenes trip to an Olympic Games qualification event for these sports. Full details here.
Other Olympic news
This week, the IOC took part in the annual meeting of the INTERPOL Anti-Match-Fixing Task Force (IMTF), which was held from 11 to 14 September in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The event brought together more than 90 police officers specialised in the prevention of competition manipulation. The IOC presented its activities in this important field and gave details about its long-standing partnership with INTERPOL. It also outlined its plans to monitor the Olympic events in Paris next summer. On the sidelines of the meeting, and as part of their ongoing partnership, the IOC and INTERPOL jointly organised a workshop on 13 September for more than 70 representatives from six NOCs, law enforcement and state authorities. The workshop focused on the roles and responsibilities of each stakeholder in the fight against match-fixing, and how to collaborate constructively at national level with mutual trust.
The newly published Olympic Solidarity and NOC Services Annual Report 2022 celebrates the achievements of the athletes, programmes and initiatives that Olympic Solidarity supports around the world. In particular, the report outlines how a total of 429 Olympic Scholarships were awarded for the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. Over 50 per cent of those scholarship-holders, 236, qualified for the Games, winning 10 medals. The Report also showcases the launch of the Olympic Scholarships for Athletes Paris 2024 programme. Full detailed info here.
INTERNATIONAL FEDERATIONS
SUMMER IFS
International Basketball Federation (FIBA)
The newly appointed FIBA Central Board for the cycle of 2023 to 2027 convened on 9 September on the eve of the World Cup Final in Manila, Philippines. It was the first meeting under the leadership of FIBA President Sheikh Saud Ali Al Thani. The Central Board proposed to appoint newly named FIBA Honorary President Hamane Niang as the new President of the FIBA Foundation. The proposal was confirmed by the FIBA Foundation Board at its first meeting. Also on the agenda were updates on the preparations for the upcoming Olympic Games Paris 2024 and the appointment of the hosts of the FIBA Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournaments 2024. More details here.
World Rowing
The 2023 World Rowing Congress was held on 11 September in Belgrade, Serbia, following the 2023 World Rowing Championships. Delegates from 89 member federations registered to attend either in-person or virtually. The Congress opened with a video message from the IOC President. There were presentations from the next hosts of the World Rowing Championships: St Catharines, Canada, in 2024 and Shanghai, China, in 2025. World Rowing admitted two new member federations: Oman and Papua New Guinea. Some 159 member federations are now affiliated to the organisation. The Asian Rowing Federation was also admitted as a recognised Continental Rowing Confederation. Full info here.
World Triathlon
World Triathlon’s Executive Board has approved the inclusion in the 2023 season calendar of a new event, the World Triathlon Para Cup Taranto (Italy), to be staged on 29 October. With this new race, World Triathlon is adding another opportunity for Para triathletes to obtain Paralympic ranking points on back-to-back weekends, with the Malaga Para Cup (Spain) taking place just the week before. More info here.
WINTER IFS
World Curling Federation (WCF)
The WCF has announced that the 2024 World Mixed Doubles and World Senior Curling Championships will take place from 20 to 27 April at the Östersund Arena in Östersund, Sweden. The city has hosted numerous WCF events since 1999. Full info here.
NATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEES
Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC)
HOC President and European Olympic Committees (EOC) President Spyros Capralos, who is also an IOC Member, met with the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti, in Heraklion, Crete, during the Mediterranean Beach Games. In their meeting, they exchanged views on sport in the Mediterranean and in Europe. The Prime Minister of Kosovo asked Greece for support in the form of know-how with a view to organising the 2030 Mediterranean Games in his country's capital, Pristina, and having increased cooperation with the HOC and the EOC. Full details here.
Organising Committees for the Olympic Games
Paris 2024
Paris 2024 played host to around 320 media representatives last week at the World Press Briefing, providing them with important information about Games-time media operations and an opportunity to visit some of the iconic venues for next year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games. Some 70 communications representatives from NOCs and International Summer Sports Federations also attended a specific briefing on media operations and an interactive communications workshop delivered by the IOC. Read the full news release here. Paris 2024 has announced that the 40th European Heritage Days will bring together two worlds that are often quite separate, sport and culture. On 16 and 17 September, visitors will be able to discover more than 60 “Cultural Olympiad” projects all over France. Full details here.
Recognised Organisations
Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA)
ANOCA has informed us that the third training camp of the winter sports support project took place in in PyeongChang, Republic of Korea, which will host the 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games. Thirty-eight African athletes, and 14 coaches and trainers were present at the training camp, which saw 10 extra places allocated to Africa this year. On the programme were winter sports disciplines-specific training, general and sport-specific fitness, Korean culture and anti-doping education. Full details here.
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)
WADA has published the programme for its 2024 Global Education Conference (GEC), and added an opening day on 27 February, making the Conference dates 27-29 February 2024. This edition will be held at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, France, in partnership with France’s National Anti-Doping Organisation (AFLD). More info here and at the Conference’s website.
SportAccord
SportAccord confirmed it has recently become a signatory of the World Anti-Doping Code as part of its ongoing commitment to clean sport. This is a significant milestone in the new direction of SportAccord, and guarantees that a comprehensive and Code-compliant anti-doping programme can be carried out for any multi-sport games or event organised by SportAccord, whose president is IOC Executive Board member Ivo Ferriani. Full news release here. In addition, in a communiqué, SportAccord has announced that the members of the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) approved the final steps in the liquidation of GAISF at an Extraordinary General Assembly held on 14 September. SportAccord, which has taken on some of GAISF’s activities, is due to approve a new set of statutes in November 2023 at the IF Forum in Lausanne. More details here.