Saudi Arabia NOC News
24 Jul 2023 - Find here the latest news from the National Olympic Committee: events, courses, general assemblies and elections, trophies and much more.
24 July 2023 - At the closing ceremony of the 15th Pan Arab Games on 15 July in Algiers (Algeria), the flag of the Union of Arab National Olympic Committees (UANOC) was handed over by UANOC President Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal to SOPC Vice President and head of the Saudi delegation Prince Fahd bin Jalawi. Saudi Arabia will host the 16th edition of the event in 2027. Eighteen countries took part in the 2023 edition. In the Saudi delegation, 46% of the athletes were under 23 years of age, allowing the young athletes to boost their sporting experience and enrich their experiences as they met other athletes from Arab countries. Info at www.olympic.sa.
27 June 2023 - The SOPC has announced that its Vice-President, Prince Fahd bin Jalawi bin Abdulaziz bin Musaed, has been elected as President of the Asian Triathlon Federation for the next four years. This came during the 31st General Assembly of the Federation, which was held in the Japanese capital, Tokyo. Info at www.olympic.sa.
23 November 2022 - The Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee (SOPC) recently signed the United Nations Sports for Climate Action Framework at the Saudi Green Initiative (SGI), a Forum held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. Prince Fahad Bin Jalawi signed up to the protocol on behalf of Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, SOPC President. The SGI Forum addressed the climate challenges in Saudi Arabia and the plans and achievements of 39 Saudi stakeholders in order to achieve the goals of SGI and 2030 vision. More details here.
20 September 2022 - The Saudi capital of Riyadh recently launched the torch relay for the 2022 Saudi Games, which will be held from 27 October to 7 November. The torch will be travelling 3,500 kilometres across the country for a total of 22 days. The relay’s mission is to promote the positive values of these games and convey peace and friendship to residents and visitors alike throughout its journey. The ceremony was attended by Prince Fahd bin Jalawi bin Abdulaziz bin Musaed, Vice-President of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee and Director of the Saudi Games, and Princess Dilayl Bint Nahar Al Saud, Deputy Director of the Saudi Games. More info at https://olympic.sa/en.
29 August 2022 - The inaugural Saudi Games will take place from 27 October to 7 November 2022, after being postponed from March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. For Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal, Minister of Sport and President of the Saudi Arabian Olympic and Paralympic Committee, the primary objective of these Games is to produce new sporting heroes through the Elite Athletes Programme launched less than a year ago. The competition is also intended to boost Saudi Arabia’s capacity to host major sporting events, in line with the Saudi Vision 2030. More info at www.olympic.sa.
28 June 2022 - The Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee (SOPC) celebrated Olympic Day at the Prince Faisal ibn Fahd Olympic Complex. SOPC CEO Abdulaziz Alenazi attended the event, in which SOPC employees also took part. An Olympic exhibition was held in a shopping centre at the heart of Riyadh, which included cultural and interactive activities to promote the principles and values of the Olympic Movement (move-learn-discover) and encourage all segments of society to engage in sports activities. Visitors to the exhibition were also offered souvenirs. More info at www.olympic.sa.
02 May 2022 - The capital of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, will host the 2023 World Combat Games (WCG). The President of the Saudi Arabian Olympic and Paralympic Committee (SOPC), Prince Abdulaziz ibn Turki Alfaisal, held a signing ceremony with the President of the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) and SportAccord, Ivo Ferriani. Info at http://olympic.sa and www.gaisf.sport.
25 March 2022 - Saudi Arabia is hosting the 7th Asian Indoor Martial Arts Games in 2025 for the first time in its history. The hosting contract was recently signed by Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki AlFaisal, President of the Saudi Olympic & Paralympic Committee (SOPC), and Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al Saud, Vice-Governor of Riyadh Province, along with Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) Acting President Raja Randhir Singh. The signing ceremony took place at the Riyadh Green Halls in Prince Faisal bin Fahad Olympic Complex, in the presence of SOPC Vice President Prince Fahad Bin Jalawi and OCA Director-General Hussain Al Musallam. Riyadh won the bid to host the competition during the 40th OCA General Assembly held in Dubai last November. More info at www.olympic.sa.
18 June 2021 - The Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC) has signed a five-year memorandum of understanding (MoU) with NEOM to collaborate on developing and enhancing a globally competitive sports ecosystem within Saudi Arabia. Signed by Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al Faisal Al-Saud, the SAOC President, and Nadhmi Al-Nasr, the NEOM Chief Executive Officer (see photo), the agreement also encourages partnership in the development of a national strategy for sport across the country. More info at www.olympic.sa
7 December 2020 - The first virtual international forum of its kind hosted by the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC) and organised by World Taekwondo (WT) in cooperation with the Saudi Taekwondo Federation and the Taekwondo Humanitarian Foundation, took place on 27 and 28 November. The event title was “Gender Equity and Women Leadership Forum”, and it attracted more than 120,000 views on SAOC social media outlets over both days. Opening speeches were delivered by SAOC President Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al Faisal Al Saud, World Taekwondo President Chungwon Choue and IOC President Thomas Bach. A number of athletes also took part in the Forum, which addressed themes such as gender equity vs equity in sport; Saudi female leadership; the IOC gender equality movement; and media portrayal. More info at www.olympic.sa and www.worldtaekwondo.org.
23 November 2020 - The President of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC), Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, chaired the Conference of the National Olympic Committees of the G20 Countries, which was organised in partnership with the Saudi Secretariat of the G20 and was held virtually on 17 November in Riyadh. The Conference was entitled "The Olympic Movement During and After the Coronavirus Pandemic", and is part of the programme of international conferences being held on the sidelines of the Saudi presidency of the G20 this year. The participants discussed the opportunities and challenges facing the Olympic and sports sector at global level after the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to shedding light on the important role that the Olympic Movement is playing in helping the international community to recover from the pandemic socially, economically and from a health standpoint. Among the participants were the IOC President; IOC Member Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud; member of the Board of Directors of the Japanese Olympic Committee Momii Keiko; IOC Member and President of the Italian National Olympic Committee Giovanni Malagò; IOC EB member and Acting President of the Association of National Olympic Committees Robin Mitchell; World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus; and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) President Witold Bańka. The Conference was attended by representatives of all the NOCs of the G20 countries, in addition to representatives of the countries that were invited to attend the G20 Summit, namely the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Spain, Rwanda, Singapore, Switzerland and Vietnam. Also in attendance were representatives of WHO, IFs and Continental Associations.
16 November 2020 - The Saudi Arabia Olympic Committee (SAOC) announced that its Director of International Communications, Razan Baker (photo), has been appointed as Chairperson of the International Bowling Federation (IBF)’s Women in Sport Committee by IBF President Sheikh Talal Mohammed Al-Sabah. Dr Baker currently serves on the Saudi Bowling Federation Board whilst also working as a sports columnist for Arab News. She will lead a Committee whose objectives will include setting strategies that advocate increased participation of women athletes in bowling and leadership positions in the IBF and its member federations.
30 October 2020 - On 25 October, the Vice-President of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC), Prince Fahad bin Jalawi (left in photo), and Princess Dilayel bint Nahar, SAOC Director of Sports and Federations Relations, awarded 30 female trainees with their doping control officer (DCO) certificates after they successfully completed the 1st women’s training course for DCOs organised by the Saudi Arabian Anti-Doping Committee (SAADC). The event was held under the supervision of SAADC President Mohammed Salih Alqunbaz and Secretary General Abdulaziz Almsaad at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Olympic Complex in Riyadh. The three-day workshop covered the key topics of detection, awareness and training, and included both written and practical exams.
12 October 2020 - The President of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC), Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, and the President of the United Through Sports (UTS) Programme and the Alliance of Independent Recognised Members of Sport (AIMS), Stephan Fox, signed a two-year memorandum of understanding between the SAOC and UTS. The signing ceremony was conducted online. The MoU focuses on the development of humankind internationally, promoting and developing an active lifestyle, sport and the youth development movement around the world; information-sharing; and additional various events hosted by both parties. Both parties will jointly establish a working team to carry out the cooperation projects as defined under this MoU.
05 October 2020 - On 27 September, Saudi Arabia celebrated the 20th anniversary of its first Olympic medal. During the Olympic Games Sydney 2000, Hadi Souan (see photo) secured the silver medal in the 400m hurdles, writing himself into Saudi Arabian sporting history and quickly becoming a national hero. With the anniversary falling in the same week as the Kingdom celebrated Saudi National Day, Souan’s achievements have played a central role in the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC)’s National Day celebrations. By embracing and championing the positive impact sport and the Olympic values can have on societies, Souan has increased activity levels throughout Saudi Arabia, inspiring new generations of children to participate in sport.
11 September 2020 - At the inaugural virtual meeting of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) Education Committee, its Chair, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, who is also President of the Saudi Arabia Olympic Committee (SAOC), explained the important role of education through sport. Since the start of the pandemic, the SAOC has used the power of Olympism to lead innovative digital education programmes and inspire tens of thousands of Saudis to stay active and engage with online learning initiatives – including in global unison on Olympic Day. Following the successful SAOC-led, #StayAtHome campaign, the SAOC President also proposed increasing the implementation of online learning opportunities throughout Asia. More info at www.olympic.sa.
13 January 2020 - For the first time since 2015 the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee hosted Olympic Day on 31 December 2019 at the Prince Faisal bin Fahad Olympic Complex in Riyadh. Because of the high heat in June, the NOC decided to postpone the event. Around 500 children, their families and NOC employees took part. An Olympic booth provided information on the Olympic Movement and values, and a nutrition booth supplied information on the importance of a healthy diet. The children were able to try out different sports and take part in a 2km fun run. Among the athletes present at the event was 400m Olympic medallist Hadi Soua’an, who talked about his career, and the importance of sport in his life.
The 23rd general assembly of the NOC, chaired by NOC President Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, took place on 25 December. A highlight of the meeting was the election of Adwa Alarifi to the Executive Board, making her the second woman to join the committee.
11 February 2019 - The election for the very first Athletes’ Commission of the NOC of Saudi Arabia was held in Riyadh at the NOC headquarters on 3 February, with 40 (male and female) athletes from 29 national federations taking part. With this election, the NOC decided, in line with its statutes, to give a permanent platform and voice to Saudi athletes and get them represented at the General Assembly and on the Executive Committee. The four male and three female athletes who earned the highest number of votes automatically become members of the NOC’s new Athletes’ Commission. Besides the seven elected members, the NOC President will appoint one male and one female athlete. More info at www.olympic.sa.