LIMA, September 11, 2017 – It took 40minutes of IOC President Thomas Bach’s press conference for a question to beasked about Paris, Los Angeles and the historic double allocation of the 2024/2028Olympic Games.
The non-vote that the IOC Session in Limais centered around provided only a meager afterthought of doubt on whetherawarding an Olympic Games 11 years ahead of time brought any concerns to theIOC.
Thomas Bach replied, in recognizable goodform, that it would have been a mistake for the IOC “not to seize the goldenopportunity” of awarding the 2024 and 2028 Games to Paris and Los Angelesrespectively.
“Eleven years has an advantage in thesetimes, which cannot be considered stable times, that the IOC will enjoy greatstability,” Bach said.
Stability and lack thereof
The rest of the press conference followingthe first day of the Executive Board meetings did not however point to such stable times within the International Olympic Committee.
Earlier that morning, the Board hadreleased a statement for the first time openly confirming the potential involvement of Lamine Diack in vote-riggingscheme for the awarding of the 2016 Olympic Games to Rio de Janeiro. Just lastweek Brazilian Federation President Carlos Nuzman was detained by local policeon grounds that he had been involved with Diack in buying votes for Rio.
It was earlier confirmed that Kuwait’s once highly influential IOCmember Sheikh Ahmad Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah would not be attending the Session inLima, amidst fears he would be detained as a part of an ongoing investigation inthe USA on his involvement in corruption within FIFA. Officially and conveniently, he was unable to attend due to preparations for the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat. Patrick Hickey, detainedduring Rio 2016 as a part of a separate Brazilian investigation into ticketrigging during the Games, had sent in his resignation from the EB just daysbefore.
Questions regarding the credibility of theIOC were all round.
Damaging image
“Nobody wants to have credibility issues inhis or her organization, but we have to face the reality that no organizationis immune [to corruption and fraud], but we think we have done what we can do,”Bach said, responding to queries on Diack, Nuzman and the image of the IOCwhich no longer seems to have the moral high ground it had taken during thecorruption scandals and allegations that rocked world footballing body FIFA in2015, for example. At the time, the IOC president had called for greater checks in all international associations, FIFA in particular, in turn distancing himself and his organization from any comparisons with FIFA's corruption and vote buying allegations.
He has since found the IOC back in the votes-for-bribes narrative that had rocked the Olympic world after the awarding of the 2002 Salt Lake City winterOlympics.
Bach however, insisted that those times were long past.
Pointing to the IOC’s stricter reforms incity allocation following Agenda 2020, the work of the internal ethicscommittee and the building of a ‘roust governance compliance system’ as the central point of credibility, Bachcontinued: “These are not just words and a commitment to change, but action, as is visible on the IOC’s swift actionin the case of Lamine Diack being stripped of honorary membership as soon asevidence of his involvement [in corruption] was provided.
“We have done what we could as anorganization,” Bach said. “Our governance system works in both prevention andimplementation, and the IOC, our Athletes Commission and Ethics Committee arewaiting on evidence from Brazilian judicial authorities regarding Carlos Nuzman,in order to act,” the IOC president insisted, adding that he himself had notbeen in touch of one of the key figures of last year’s Olympic Games
“Having undertaken these reforms does notmean that we ignore the past, he added, “this will be addressed with these newinstruments, and as we said, once evidence is provided.”
It seemed however that Bach was using Diackas a scapegoat for a deeper issue within the IOC that is hardly likely toinvolve just one “black sheep” individual, and one that will not be solved bydodging questions on obvious reputational damage to the IOC once again.
NorthKorean threat
Bach was also asked to comment on themounting tensions in North Korea and impending geopolitical concerns in theregion ahead of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Games. North Korea’s increased involvementin missile testing has brought edged responses from governments of not justneighboring South Korea but also Japan and China – the host countries of the followingtwo editions of the Summer and Winter Games.
“There is no doubt being raised about theWinter Games 2018,” Bach said, confirming the IOC had been in touch with thegovernments involved. “[The IOC] appeals for diplomatic solution, we appeal forpeace.
“Right now, the UN member states arediscussing a draft of an Olympic truce resolution for PyeongChang 2018 and wehope that these discussions will be approved in UN General Assembly in November,”the IOC President said, added that the door would be open for the participationof North Korean athletes in the Games next Feburuary, a sentiment that had beenrepeated earlier in the day by Chairman of PyeongChang 2018 Organizing CommitteeLee Hee Beom.
“We are hoping that North Korean athleteswill be given the necessary support to take part [in the Games], and we hopepeace will prevail on the Korean peninsula.
“So far there is not even a hint that thereis a treat for the security of the Games in this context of tensions with NorthKorea,’” the IOC president said.
Follow Sonja Nikcevic on Twitter @sonjanik13
