Juan Pablo Salazar

COL

Role

Governing Board Member

Organization

International Paralympic Committee

Originally from Bogota, Colombia, Juan Pablo Salazar is a passionate global activist for the rights of persons with disabilities, with emphasis in sports and communication.

In the human rights field, he has served as Founder of the Arcangeles Foundation, President of the National Council on Disability, and Director of the Presidential Plan for the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in the Presidency of Colombia. Currently, he is Vice President of the Inter-American Committee for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities of the Organisation of American States (OAS).

As related to sports, Salazar is the founder of the first wheelchair rugby club in Colombia, and has also served as Chef de Mission of the Colombian Delegation for the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Paralympic Games, President of the Colombian Sports Federation for People with Physical Disabilities and President of the Colombian Paralympic Committee. He currently serves as a Governing Board member of the International Paralympic Committee.

Salazar has worked as Creative Director in political campaigns for the Senate, House of Representatives and Presidency of Colombia. He is also a film director and book author and has received multiple awards for his work as a communicator.

The speakers

Using the unique power of sport to bring people together, the Olympism in Action Forum saw a range of global players, including Olympic Movement stakeholders, athletes, private and public sector leaders, NGO representatives, academics, artists and the media come together to talk on topical contemporary issues. Chosen because of their ability to effect change and their wide range of sometimes differing opinions, the speakers led lively debates and seeked to challenge received wisdom to inspire new ways of thinking.