Olympic Highlights
IOC ACTIVITIES
PRESIDENT
The IOC President, Thomas Bach, and the WADA President, Sir Craig Reedie, met in Lausanne. Both expressed their determination to move forward together with the shared goal of strengthening the fight against doping and protecting clean athletes. Both were confident that the working groups established by WADA with regard to independent testing and governance would work in a constructive way and lead to good results in the interests of clean athletes. “There was a very positive atmosphere in our meeting today (5 December), and I am very happy that any perceived misunderstandings could be clarified. We agreed to continue to work closely together to strengthen the fight against doping under the leadership of WADA”, said President Bach. For his part, Sir Craig said: “This was a very constructive meeting with a good atmosphere. We share a common goal to strengthen the fight against doping and to protect the clean athletes and in this direction we will closely cooperate”.
In a telephone conversation, US President-elect Donald Trump expressed to the IOC President his great support for the Olympic Movement, on which they discussed a number of topics. The President-elect also expressed his strong support for Los Angeles 2024, and invited President Bach to visit the White House in the new year.
Speaking by video link to the IOC debriefing of the Olympic Games Rio 2016 in Tokyo, the IOC President emphasised the success of the Games despite all the challenges they had faced. “The Olympic Games Rio 2016 were the most consumed Olympic Games ever. Half the world’s population watched coverage of the Games. Broadcasters around the world made more television coverage and more digital coverage available than ever before: We had an increase of 75 percent of produced broadcast hours compared to London 2012 and there were 7 billion video views of official content on social media platforms”, he said. He also urged the organisers of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 and the future Games organisers to make “an unwavering commitment” to achieve successful Games. (see also the “other Olympic news” section).
The IOC President attended the opening of the World Archery Excellence Centre in Lausanne, accompanied by World Archery President and IOC Vice-President Uğur Erdener; the Turkish Sports Minister Akif Çağatay Kılıç; Councillor of State of the Canton of Vaud Philippe Leuba; and the Deputy Mayor of Lausanne responsible for sport, Oscar Tosato, as well as numerous Olympic champions. After presenting a special trophy to Uğur Erdener, President Bach had the opportunity to watch some archery matches.
The IOC President has met the new International Hockey Federation (FIH) President, Narinder Dhruv Batra, accompanied by his predecessor, Leandro Negre. The preparations for the tournaments at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 and of the Youth Olympic Games Buenos Aires 2018 were discussed, as well as the Olympic Channel.
With World Baseball and Softball Confederation (WBSC) President Riccardo Fraccari, the meeting focused mainly on preparations for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, where baseball and softball will be on the programme.
President Bach held meetings with IOC Executive Board Members Anita L. DeFrantz and Angela Ruggiero, as well as with IOC Member Mamadou Diagna Ndiaye, also President of the Senegal Olympic Committee.
An MoU has been signed with the International Masters Games Association (IMGA), represented by its President, Kai Holm. Under this new agreement, the IOC and the IMGA will discuss the possibility for the host cities of the Summer and Winter Olympic Games and Youth Olympic Games to organise the Masters Games in the years following the Games. The two organisations will also strengthen their cooperation in the field of masters sports and continue to explore means to promote and encourage mature athletes from all over the world to practise sport regularly. Read the full story here.
The President of “Right to Play”, Olympian Johann Olav Koss, has paid a visit to the IOC President. Their discussions focused mainly on the different areas of cooperation between the two organisations.
The IOC President has welcomed Catalan artist Rosa Serra, whose works include the Olympic Suite, a series of sculptures on Olympic themes.
MEMBERS
Pierre-Olivier Beckers-Vieujant took part in the Final Conference of the SIGGS (Support the Implementation of Good Governance in Sport) Project held recently in Brussels (Belgium). In his keynote speech, he underlined that “good governance is about better return, better performance; it is not just about compliance, which is not the goal but the means to become more credible and receive better support!” Around 80 participants attended the Conference, among them representatives of various European or international federations, as well as representatives of 17 different European NOCs. The SIGGS Project was created with the aim of providing specific, tailor-made and practical advice to NOCs and national sports federations on the implementation of good governance Read the full press release here.
COMMISSIONS
The Coordination Commission for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 completed its third official visit to the Japanese capital (1-2 December). The Commission acknowledged the organisers’ significant progress in Games preparations, as well as their commitment to quickly finalise the venue master plan and integrate the five new sports approved during the IOC Session in Rio de Janeiro into their plans. “We are very pleased with the significant progress that has been achieved since the last visit of the Coordination Commission to Tokyo,” said the Chair of the Coordination Commission, John Coates. “We have seen that President Mori, Governor Koike, Minister Marukawa and Minister Matsuno all share a common desire to deliver outstanding Olympic Games in 2020 for the athletes and for the people of Tokyo and Japan. The IOC and all of the Japanese partners are rowing in the same direction. Our continued close collaboration will ensure that the venue masterplan is finalised quickly; that the significant savings in the Games budget are delivered; and that the local population is left with an important positive legacy from these Games.” The Commission’s fourth visit to Tokyo is scheduled for June 2017. Read the full press release here.
Other Olympic News
Organised by the IOC in the host city of the next edition of the Games of the Olympiad, the IOC debriefing on the Olympic Games Rio 2016 gathered together some 600 participants, including a Brazilian delegation led by Rio de Janeiro’s Mayor, Eduardo Paes, and Rio 2016 Organising Committee President Carlos Arthur Nuzman, delegation which shared their knowledge and experience with representatives from future Olympic host cities. Numerous constructive discussions and exchanges of good practices between participants were generated both inside and outside the meetings by the successes and legacy of Rio 2016. For her part, the Chair of the IOC Coordination Commission for the Rio Games, Nawal El Moutawakel, expanded on the transformational influence that the Games had exerted on the host city. “The 2016 Games became a catalyst for urban development, which has spurred investment in Rio that would otherwise not have happened,” she said. Read full press releases on olympic.org
Protecting the integrity of sport in Ukraine was the focus of a recent National Integrity in Sport Workshop held jointly by the IOC and INTERPOL in Ukraine. Some 80 participants from law enforcement, the NOC and national sports federations, public authorities and the betting industry took part in the one-day training on 1 December focusing on the criminal challenge posed by competition manipulation and other threats to the integrity of sport. Keynote speeches were given by Ihor Zhdanov, Minister of Youth and Sports of Ukraine (2nd from right); Pavlo Kostenko, NOC of Ukraine Executive Board Member and Chairman of the NOC Legal Commission (right); Vadym Troyan, Head of Ukrainian National Police (left); and Marten Ehnberg, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Ukraine. Read the full press release here.
From 28 to 30 November, over 100 participants from all 41 NOCs in the Americas took part in a forum aimed at empowering and training women working in sport and the Olympic Movement to excel as leaders (photo above). The Forum for Women Leaders in Sport in the Americas was co-organised by the IOC, the Peruvian NOC and the Pan-American Sports Organisation (PASO) in Lima (Peru). During the three-day Forum, the participants went through intensive coaching and training combined with discussions and mentoring sessions with the help of a team of professional trainers. This Forum concludes a series of four Women in Sport Leadership Forums held earlier this year across four continents for representatives of NOCs, International and National Federations. The next Forum will take place from 6 to 8 March 2017 in conjunction with the International Women’s Day celebrations, and will target women in International and National Federations. Read the full press release here.
international sports fEdErations
The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) has launched a secure online portal in six languages that can be used to report doping. The platform can be accessed by clicking on the “Report Doping” banner which is displayed on the main IAAF home page (www.iaaf.org). Read the full story here.
The Annual General Assembly of the International Equestrian Federation (FEI) and the FEI Awards Gala (photo) were held in Tokyo on 22 November. More than 300 delegates representing their member national federations attended, together with key stakeholders. The topics discussed included some important issues like the proposed changes to the format for the Olympic and Paralympic Games and that of the FEI World Equestrian Games in 2018. At the end of a two-year consultation period, the delegates voted overwhelmingly in favour of the proposed format changes for the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo (details on www.fei.org). At the Awards Gala, the equestrian community paid tribute to the people who had helped to make 2016 a great year of sport. The list of winners can be found here.
Following the FIE international training camp that took place in Bourges and Melun (France) in 2016, the International Fencing Federation (FIE) is launching its next training camp, traditionally held one week before the start of the Junior and Cadet Fencing World Championships. The next camp will take thus place at the end of March 2017 in Plovdiv (Bulgaria), which will host the Championships next year. Invitations were sent to a total of 48 countries from each continent. The past editions held in Budapest (Hungary), Kazan (Russian Federation), Moscow (Russian Federation) and Bourges (France) were attended by fencers who competed at the Olympic Games Rio 2016. More details on www.fie.ch.
The International Association Football Federation (FIFA) held its first Executive Football Summit, one of the key initiatives introduced as part of the FIFA reforms, in Paris (France) on 22 and 23 November. The 11 summits scheduled between November 2016 and March 2017 will bring together member association presidents and general secretaries to discuss strategic matters and provide a platform for discussion, debate and an exchange of know-how. The main topic on the agenda of the Paris summit, which was attended by FIFA President Gianni Infantino (photo above), was FIFA’s revamped development programme, “Forward”. Read the full story here.
After launching its first programme in the Syrian refugee camps on the Turkish border in 2015, the International Judo Federation (IJF) has now begun a new programme, again through its “Judo for Peace” Commission. This programme is being run in the Maheba refugee camp in northern Zambia, which is home to almost 20,000 refugees from nine African countries, of whom 10,000 are children. These include Faustin, a young Burundian living in Maheba since January 2015. A black belt judoka, he has just been appointed as the coach of the refugee programme. Numerous personalities were at the official opening of this programme, which has been in operation for several weeks. The IJF has provided equipment (tatami and judogi), which will allow the programme to be expanded. Read the full story here.
Winter Ifs
The International Ski Federation (FIS), in partnership with the Finnish Anti-Doping Agency, will release a series of videos in the lead-up to the 2017 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships in Lahti (Finland). Each week a video will feature different athletes and nations uniting for the cause of clean sport. Read the full press release here.
national olympic committees
At its “2016 Sports Night” on 27 November in Vienna, the Austrian NOC presented the participant pins to the athletes who took part in the Olympic Games Rio 2016. NOC President and IOC Member Karl Stoss (left), Secretary General Peter Mennel (right) and Sports Director Christoph Sieber presented the athletes with their pins. Details on www.olympia.at.
In the framework of the IOC Athlete Career Programme, the first Olympians Athletes Forum in Cape Verde was held last 29 November in Praia (photo above). For the participants, athletes and sports agents, the Forum was an opportunity to learn more about how to plan their professional career when they retire from competition. It was conducted by two Olympians, Susana Feitor (Portugal) and Kadidiatou Kanoute Tounkara (Mali), a member of the Athletes’ Commission of the Association of African NOCs (ANOCA). They both shared their knowledge and experience with the participants. For the Chair of the Cape Verde NOC Athletes’ Commission and the first Cape-Verdean Olympian, Isménia Frederico, this Forum showed that athletes have many qualities that can be used in the job market, when they finish their sporting careers. More details on www.coc.cv.
After Medellin, it was Cali which hosted the next of the Colombian NOC’s workshops as part of the IOC Athlete Career Programme. NOC Director Constanza Castellanos led the workshop, accompanied by Mauricio Rivas, the IOC Athletes’ Commission facilitator, and Norma Barragán of Adecco Colombia. A total of 15 athletes, including Paralympic athletes, took part in the workshop (photo above). Read the full story here.
The headquarters of the Spanish NOC in Madrid recently hosted the executive committees of the Olympic and non-Olympic national federations for a day of working meetings. Led by NOC President Alejandro Blanco, this day was an opportunity to address various topics, such as the Mediterranean Games, initially planned to be held in Tarragona in 2017 but now taking place in 2018; the scholarships awarded by the NOC; the five new sports on the programme of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020; and the NOC’s activities report. More details on www.coe.es
On 27 November, at Olympic House in Bakau, the Gambian NOC hosted an IOC Athlete Career Programme outreach workshop in cooperation with Adecco. The workshop was led by Olympian Kadidiatou Kanoute Tounkara, a member of the ANOCA Athletes’ Commission. Forty athletes aged from 16 to 20 took part in the workshop (photo above), the aim of which was to help athletes prepare for their careers after retirement from elite sport. NOC First Vice-President and IOC Member Beatrice Allen spoke to the participants at the opening of the workshop.
The Hellenic NOC has presented the Olympic participant pins to the Greek athletes who took part in the Olympic Games Rio 2016. The ceremony was held in the Panathenaic Stadium on the occasion of the Athens marathon on 13 November. The athletes received their pins from Deputy Sports Minister Giorgos Vasileiadis and NOC President Spyros Capralos (photo above). Details on www.hoc.gr.
Czech athletes received their Olympic participant pins for the Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro in an unusual environment. The President of the Czech Olympic Committee, Jiří Kejval, presented the badges at an event organised by the athletes themselves with the help of NOC. Fencer Jiří Beran, who during the first round of the tournament at the 2016 Games made gesture in the spirit of fair-play by acknowledging his competitor‘s point, provided other Olympians with the opportunity to try his sport. Kitted up in fencing gear, in which they received their badges, were, for example, slalom canoeist Vítězslav Gebas, badminton player Petr Koukal, swimmer Jana Pechanová, shooter Libuše Jahodová, fencer Jiří Beran, table tennis player Iveta Vacenovská, and Chef de Mission Martin Doktor (photo above). More info on www.olympic.cz
On 30 November at the Venezuelan NOC headquarters, 15 personalities from Venezuelan athletics were inducted into their national federations’ hall of fame, and others received the Nelson Rodríguez Order. These included coach Jesús “Tuqueque” Velásquez, who trained Rio 2016 triple jump silver medallist Yulimar Rojas (photo above).
recognised Organisations
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has issued its call for proposals for the 2017 Scientific Research Grants. WADA is committed to increasing the volume of research devoted to developing new and improved detection methods for performance-enhancing substances and methods. Scientists interested in submitting research projects are invited to apply by 15 February 2017. More details here.
The debrief into the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games concluded in Tokyo on 30 November, with the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) stressing that, despite the success of the Games, there are many lessons to learn for future organisers and for the cities bidding to host these Games. Almost 400 people attended the debriefing session, which was organised by the IPC Academy in parallel to the IOC’s debrief of the Olympic Games Rio 2016. Read the full story here.