Olympic Highlights 30/10/2023
IOC
PRESIDENT
IOC President Thomas Bach was in South America last week.
He began his visit in Santiago, Chile by addressing the General Assembly of Pan Am Sports, during which he congratulated the organisation on its 75th anniversary. He gave a brief overview for the upcoming Olympic Games Paris 2024, which he said will be more urban, youthful and gender-balanced as well as being more sustainable.
Accompanied throughout his visit by IOC member in Chile Neven Ilic, he visited the headquarters of the NOC, where he was welcomed by the President of the NOC, Miguel Ángel Mujica. The NOC HQ is also home to the Athlete Training Centre, and the President met athletes from several NOCs, before going to see the boxing competition, which is being organised by the IOC’s Boxing Task Force.
While in Mumbai the IOC President attended an Indian Super League (ISL) football match between Mumbai City FC and Kerala Blasters FC. He was accompanied by IOC Member Nita Ambani and Bollywood celebrity couple Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor.
During his visit to Chile, the President met many NOC presidents and hosted a breakfast with IOC members and IF presidents who were attending the Games.
After visiting Casa Brasilia, the President headed for the Athletes' Village, where he met numerous athletes from a number of NOCs, and took part in a 90-minute Q&A session, before having lunch with athletes in the Village dining hall.
Earlier, he had toured the Village which, after the Pan Am Games, will be converted to accommodation for more than 1,200 homeless families.
During the Village visit, a high-level delegation sent by US President Joe Biden presented a medal and support from President Biden to President Bach. They passed on a message from President Biden conveying his full commitment to the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 and the Olympic Games Paris 2024. The delegation included the US Secretary of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra, the US Ambassador, Bernadette Meehan, and four-time Olympic high jumper, Chaunté Lowe, who thanked the President for the work the IOC is doing to ensure clean sport and fair competition for the athletes.
After visiting the Athletes’ Village, the President attended a number of sports competitions accompanied by Neven Ilic, including skateboarding, gymnastics, swimming and taekwondo. He also visited the esports pavilion.
Arriving in the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo, to celebrate the centenary of the NOC of Uruguay, President Bach was greeted by Julio César Maglione, an honorary IOC member and President of the NOC, who accompanied him throughout the visit.
The first stop was to meet 150 junior athletes and members of the Athletes' Commission at a local sports centre, where he joined in the sport and took part in an hour-long Q&A session.
That evening, before the Centenary Celebrations, President Bach met the Uruguayan President, Luis Alberto Lacalle Pou. They discussed the international situation and the upcoming Olympic Games Paris 2024. The Uruguayan President expressed his support for the unifying mission of the Olympic Movement and the Olympic Games.
During the visit to Montevideo, an official Olympic postage stamp was unveiled. The design for the official stamp was revealed after President Bach addressed representatives of both houses of the country's parliament. It features portraits of President Bach and the founder of the modern Olympic Movement, Pierre de Coubertin. At the ceremony, the design for the stamp was unveiled by the Vice-President of the Republic and President of the General Assembly of both Houses, Beatriz Argimón, and the Vice-President of El Correo, the country's postal system, Julio Silveira. During the ceremony, the Vice-President of El Correo explained the motivation behind creating the stamp to honour the Olympic Movement and the Uruguayan NOC. President Bach told the audience that he was accepting this “high honour on behalf of the entire Olympic Movement”. The Uruguayan Vice-President acknowledged the work of the IOC and the Olympic Movement and their contribution to peace.
Later, President Bach addressed the Municipal Council of Montevideo, where he was honoured by the members as a “Visitante Importante”.
Moving to Argentina, IOC Executive Board member Gerardo Werthein hosted a dinner for the President. Joining the dinner were NOC President Mario Moccia, NOC Executive Committee members and Argentinian Olympians. In Argentina, he was accompanied by Mr Werthein throughout his visit.
The next day at the NOC headquarters, he addressed the NOC Executive Committee and National Federation presidents, before officially opening a new Olympic Museum. The Argentinian NOC will celebrate its centenary later this year.
After his return to Lausanne at Olympic House, the IOC President and the China Media Group (CMG) President, Shen Haixiong, have signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two organisations. The MoU states that the IOC and CMG will continue to collaborate and work together throughout their partnership. CMG has broadcast the Olympic Games in China since the 1980s – firstly through its agreement with the Asia Broadcast Union, and subsequently when it acquired rights directly from the IOC for the Olympic Games Beijing 2008. Before the signing of the MoU at Olympic House, President Bach welcomed President Shen to the Olympic Museum, and they had the opportunity to see the present that Chinese President Xi Jinping had given to the Museum during his visit in January 2017. The Suzhou-style silk panel depicts two women playing cuju, a ball game that is the earliest known recorded game similar to football. During the visit, the two presidents unveiled CMG’s newly re-designed commemorative stone in the Olympic Museum’s Donors Wall. Read the full news release here.
The next day, President Bach attended the final of the Rugby World Cup 2023 at the Stade de France in Paris, France. He was welcomed by World Rugby President Sir Bill Beaumont. He also had a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, during which the two men discussed the preparations for the Olympic Games Paris 2024. He also met South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, whom he congratulated on the South African team’s victory. The two leaders then discussed the geopolitical situation and its impact on sport.
MEMBERS
IOC member Luis Mejía Oviedo was re-elected President of Centro Caribe Sports for the period 2023-27, during the Ordinary General Assembly of the sports organisation, held on 23 October in Santiago, Chile. He will thus continue at the helm of the organisation, which will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2024. More info here.
OTHER OLYMPIC NEWS
The IOC and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) have launched new guidelines to help the organising committees of large-scale international events navigate and manage the complexity of hosting these projects and help mitigate risks. The “Guidelines on the Effective Delivery of Infrastructure and Associated Services in the Context of the Olympic Games” follow the recent publications aimed at measuring the long-term impact of global events. Full news release here.
How to effectively tackle the manipulation of sports competitions through cooperation and investigations was the focus of a virtual workshop for countries of Central Europe, organised jointly by the IOC, the International Police Organisation (INTERPOL) and the Council of Europe (CoE) on 17 October. More than 70 representatives from NOCs, National Federations, law enforcement and state authorities from Hungary, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia and Slovenia took part in the workshop. They shared experiences and best practices on legal and regulatory approaches, as well as the NOC educational activities. They also discussed establishing and developing a national platform; conducting effective criminal investigations; and adopting relevant anti-match-fixing rules. By bringing together all these key stakeholders from the five countries, the event promoted and enhanced cooperation at national level.
TelevisaUnivision has acquired free-to-air and pay TV broadcast rights for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 in Mexico. This partnership between the IOC and TelevisaUnivision includes 200 hours of coverage of the Olympic Games on TelevisaUnivision’s Canal 5 free-to-air television platform. Full news release here.
An updated Q&A on participation of athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport in international competitions is available here.
INTERNATIONAL FEDERATIONS
SUMMER IFS
World Aquatics
World Aquatics champions and world record breakers Kaylee McKeown and Qin Haiyang have been named the World Aquatics Swimming Athletes of the Year. They were honoured during an event at the site for the future World Aquatics headquarters in Budapest, Hungary, on 23 October, following the conclusion of the World Aquatics Swimming World Cup 2023 tour that took place in the Hungarian capital. Full details here. In addition, the host cities for the World Aquatics Artistic Swimming World Cup 2024 have been revealed, as well as the schedule for the Diving World Cup 2024 series.
World Athletics
World Athletics has launched “Road to Paris 2024”, an online tool to help athletes, media and fans track the qualification process for next year's Olympic Games. The tool provides a real-time view of each event over the course of the Paris 2024 qualification period, which ends on 5 May for the marathon and on 30 June for all other events. Full details here. The World Athletics Athletes' Commission has elected New Zealand’s four-time world shot put champion Valerie Adams as Chair and Canadian 3,000m steeplechase record-holder Matthew Hughes as Deputy Chair following the first meeting of its new membership this week. In their new positions, they will both join the World Athletics Council as full voting members. More details here.
WINTER IFS
International Ski Mountaineering Federation (ISMF)
Regula Meier was re-elected ISMF President during the Plenary Assembly held mid-October in Paris, France. Jordi Canals was also voted to continue as Secretary General. Armenia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Albania were approved as new full ISMF members – the total number of which is now 47. More details here. Furthermore, ski mountaineering (skimo) will be included in the programme of the 9th Asian Winter Games to be held in Harbin, China, in 2025. The announcement was made recently by the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). Skimo will make its official Olympic debut at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. Full details here.
RECOGNISED FEDERATIONS
International Powerboating Federation (UIM)
Held under the theme of “Sustainable Development”, the 96th UIM General Assembly introduced a new format this year, combining committee meetings held by video conference, and a small number of in-person meetings in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Three new National Powerboat Authorities from Indonesia, Nepal and Philippines (Jetski) were welcomed by the General Assembly, and the Thailand Motor Boat Association was upgraded to full UIM membership status. The General Assembly reaffirmed the UIM’s commitment to contributing actively to the efforts made by all motorsports to achieve the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. Full details here.
NATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEES
Georgian NOC
The new Olympic Museum was inaugurated at the Georgian NOC premises last 6 October, the anniversary of the NOC’s establishment. The Museum of modern design is spread over 300 sqm with the renovated Olympic library. NOC President leri Khabelov was the initiator of the creation of the museum and library, while the concept of exhibitions and projects was directed by First NOC Vice-President Elguja Berishvili. The project was implemented with the financial support of the European Olympic Committees (EOC) and the Ministry of Culture, Sport and Youth of Georgia among others. Info at www.geonoc.org.ge.
Moroccan NOC (CNOM)
Mustapha Zekri, the former CNOM Vice-President, has died aged 87. He was also President of the Royal Moroccan Gymnastics Federation and a member of the Executive Committee of the International Committee of Mediterranean Games. Mr Zekri played an important role in developing sport in Morocco, contributing, among other things, to the growth of gymnastics in the country. Details here.
Oman Olympic Committee (OOC)
Meeting in Muscat, the Executive Office of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) NOC Secretaries-General agreed on the United Arab Emirates hosting the first edition of the Youth Gulf Sports Games in Dubai city. Furthermore, the Executive Committee approved the proposals raised by the Advisory Committee for Sports of the Women’s Committee. More info here. Proposing events to be included in the Gulf Sports Games, supporting, enhancing and raising the standards of women’s teams participating in regional and international tournaments, and spreading awareness and the culture of sports and physical activity among women in the Gulf countries were among the proposals made by the GCC Women’s Committee during its meeting. Full details here. Read also a report about the 35th meeting of heads of the GCC NOCs here.
Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC)
Grace Fu has been recently co-opted as a member to the SNOC Executive Committee. She is a Member of Parliament and currently serves as the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment. She was appointed to oversee the nation’s sports agenda for 2015-20 when she served as the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth. More details here.
Spanish NOC (COE)
Lydia Valentín, Gervasio Deferr, Fermín Cacho, Tania Lamarca, Alberto Fernández, Teresa Portela, Joan Lino and Marta Mangué have become the first athletes selected as ambassadors for the social project being run by the COE and the Spanish Government. The project involves the construction of 25 sports facilities in refugee centres across Spain. The official presentation of the ambassadors was attended by the COE President, Alejandro Blanco, the Minister for Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, José Luis Escriva, and the Minister for Culture and Sport, Miquel Iceta. The project is a result of the memorandum of understanding signed in 2022 between the COE, the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration and the Olympic Refuge Foundation with a view to promoting refugee integration through sport. Full details here.
Venezuelan NOC
Over 60 athletes have received their OLY certificate from the World Olympians Association (WOA) and the Venezuelan Olympians Association (AVAO). The ceremony was attended by Inés Remersaro, a Uruguayan Olympian and manager for the Americas at the WOA. NOC President María Soto and Secretary General Katiuska Santaella visited the home of Julio César León, the first Venezuelan Olympic athlete, to give him his OLY certificate. Now aged 98, he competed in cycling at the Olympic Games London 1948. In addition, NOC President Soto was elected Vice-President of Centro Caribe Sports for the period 2023-27 at the organisation’s General Assembly.
ORGANISING COMMITTEES FOR THE OLYMPIC GAMES
PARIS 2024
The Paris 2024 Board of Directors met recently for a progress report on the Olympic and Paralympic project just one year before the Games. This meeting provided an opportunity to present an update on the first test events, held this summer, which are key to the preparations for 2024. An update was also delivered on the key programmes that make up the legacy, engagement and cultural strategy for Paris 2024. Full press release here.
RECOGNISED ORGANISATIONS
Association of the National Olympic Committees of Africa (ANOCA)
The new ANOCA Magazine is dedicated to the 2nd Gender Equality Forum. Click here for a full report outlining the major guidelines and new vision of the African Olympic and Sports Movement on the strategic empowerment of women in sport across Africa.
Pan Am Sports
During its General Assembly held in Santiago, Chile, ahead of the 19th Pan American Games, Pan Am Sports welcomed two new changes to the Executive Committee. Susanne Lyons, former United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, has been elected 3rd Vice-President. Mario Garcia de la Torre, Secretary General of the Mexican NOC, became an Executive Committee member. Full info here.
SportAccord
The IF Forum will take place at the Olympic Museum in Lausanne from 13 to 15 November. Under the theme of “Sport (R)evolution”, the IF Forum is designed to cover issues that are transforming the environment in which IFs work. Full details, including the main speakers and topics, can be found here.
International Association for Sports and Leisure Facilities (IAKS)
On 24 October, the winners of the IOC/IAKS and International Paralympic Committee (IPC)/IAKS architecture prizes for sustainable, accessible and innovative sports and leisure facilities were announced during a gala held in Cologne, Germany. This year, 88 projects from 22 countries were in the running. A total of 11 projects in five categories were honoured. Two student projects representing the future of sports architecture were recognised for their originality and inventiveness. For the first time, two Public Choice Awards were also presented. This year, the IAKS Congress theme was “Building resilient communities through sports and leisure facilities”. Full details at www.iaks.sport