October N.166

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OCTOBER N.166

EOC

A month of emotions - The European Olympic Committees (EOC) celebrated several special dates throughout October. The EOC General Assembly in Minsk not only showcased the successes of 25 years of the European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) and confirmed the future of the event up to 2021, it also launched the EOC’s new visual identity, based on a 50-piece mosaic. Furthermore, the EOC celebrated 10 years of the European Olympic Laurel Awards, given to the continent’s most active sports leaders. Finally, the General Assembly confirmed Minsk as the site of the 2nd European Games, to be hosted in 2019. Minsk already boasts numerous state-of-the-art venues, which will help ease the organisation for the Games. At the end of October, it seemed that good news was falling as fast as autumn leaves!

The 4th Executive Committee meeting of the year was organised in Minsk on the eve of the EOC General Assembly. EOC acting President Janez Kocijančič, Secretary General Raffaele Pagnozzi and Treasurer Kikis Lazarides informed their colleagues of recent activities after the NOC of Belarus’s First Vice President Maxim Ryzhenkov welcomed participants to the committee’s iconic headquarters. Members addressed topical issues, as well as upcoming events. Participants also took the opportunity to review plans for the General Assembly, which were devised by NOC Secretary General Anatoly Kotov and his team.

The 45th EOC General Assembly was opened with a welcome address from His Excellency Alexander Lukashenko, President of both the Republic of Belarus and the country’s NOC. Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) President Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah also addressed the members. Participants unanimously supported Kocijančič’s appeal to show solidarity with Patrick Hickey and protect his right to defend himself. The agenda on day one included an update on the second edition of the European Games in 2019 and a celebration of the EYOF in its 25th anniversary year. Important decisions were made regarding the festival, with the winter and summer editions for 2021 being awarded to Vuokatti, Finland and Košice, Slovakia respectively. The first day concluded with this year’s Piotr Nurowski prize for Best European Young Athlete, which, from a shortlist of four, was awarded to 17-year-old pole vaulter Emmanouil Karalis from Greece. Key activities on day two included presentations from WADA’s Chief Operating Officer Frédéric Donzé and Head of Olympic Games Services Toshio Tsurunaga, whose presentation highlighted the fact that European athletes won 48% of medals at Rio 2016. Kocijančič, who is also Vice President of the International Ski Federation, described the General Assembly as a “crucial” two days for the Olympic Movement in Europe, explaining: “This General Assembly was crucially important. We needed to take vital decisions, and we have done that. We have agreed to help Patrick Hickey prove his innocence and return to Ireland, we have chosen Minsk to host the European Games in 2019 and we have launched a new and innovative corporate identity”. “I am delighted that the future of the European Games is secure. The Games are an important event for European athletes and have a key role to play in helping them reach the Olympic Games by offering qualification opportunities and vital experience of a major multisport event”. “For Minsk 2019, we want to prioritise the use of the city’s existing sports venues and deliver a Games concept suited to Belarus’s national sports identity.” The 46th EOC General Assembly in 2017 will be hosted in Zagreb, Croatia.

2016 October EOC Newsletter

EOC reveals new mosaic logo – At a welcome dinner on the eve of its General Assembly, the EOC revealed a new corporate logo as one part of a completely new look and feel for the organisation. The key inspiration for the new visual identity is a mosaic – an art form synonymous with European history and culture. The EOC’s corporate logo is now a 50-piece mosaic consisting of blue and azure colours, representing the 50 member nations of the European Olympic Committees. The EOC’s new look and feel was commissioned and approved by President Patrick Hickey in April. A representative from each of the 50 European NOCs placed a mosaic piece into a sculpture to create and reveal the new logo in an innovative ceremony. Kocijančič said: “The EOC’s new look and feel is an excellent visual representation of Europe and the unifying role that sport plays across our continent. “Tonight’s logo reveal was an innovative way to introduce our new corporate identity to our membership, who will receive a full briefing during the General Assembly tomorrow about the new look and feel and how they can use it for marketing purposes.”

The 25th anniversary of the EYOF was celebrated with an exhibition staged at the NOC of Belarus’s headquarters and was attended by athletes who have won gold medals at both the EYOF and Olympic Games. The EYOF is the top multisport event for young European athletes between the ages of 14 and 18. It was first launched in 1991 by Belgian Jacques Rogge, who was President of the EOC at the time. Since then, the EOC has organised a summer and a winter edition every two years, which offer young athletes their first Olympic experience and act as a springboard for future sporting stars. Approximately 3,600 participants take part in the summer festivals, and there are around 1,600 athletes at the winter edition.

Some 20 athletes who won a gold medal at the Olympic Games started their careers competing in the EYOF. Two of these champions joined the EOC General Assembly in Minsk. They were Russian gymnast Elena Mikhailovna Zamolodchikova and Greek Judoka Ilias Iliadis. Elena Zamolodchikova began taking part in sport at the age of six and enjoyed a long and successful career lasting over 20 years. With amazing acrobatics, including her trademark double-twisting double- back somersault in the floor exercise, “Zamo" always provided a welcome burst of energy to her team. In 1997, aged 15, she won a gold medal at the Lisbon Summer EYOF. Two years later, aged 17, she made her World Championships debut in Tianjin, China, winning a gold in the vault and a silver with her team. She did even better at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games the following year, winning gold medals in the vault and floor exercise, as well as a team silver medal. Zamolodchikova continued to star for Russia, winning silver in the vault at the 2003 Anaheim World Championships and the team bronze at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games. She was 26 years old at her final competition in 2009, the University Games in Belgrade, where Russia finished 2nd as a team. After her retirement, she stayed committed to sport, working as a coach for novice gymnasts in Moscow and travelling the world as an FIG “brevet” accredited judge. She joined the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 2015. Ilias Iliadis was born Jarji Zviadauri in Akhmeta, Georgia. He competed at the Murcia 2001 Summer EYOF, where he won a medal in judo. His family moved to Greece in 2003. He was then adopted by his personal coach, Nikos Iliadis, and took Greek nationality, starting his international career under his new name. Iliadis won a gold medal in the 81kg division at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens when he was 17. He also won a gold medal in the 90kg category six years later at the 2010 World Judo Championships in Tokyo. As Greece's flag bearer, he had the honour of being the first athlete to march into the Bird's Nest stadium during the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. He announced his retirement after the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

The 6th Piotr Nurowski Prize for Best European Young Athlete was awarded to Greek pole vaulter Emmanouil Karalis at the General Assembly in Minsk. NOC delegates voted for Karalis from a list of four nominees. The award ceremony took place on Friday 22 October during a Gala Dinner. The other three nominated athletes - artistic gymnast Amy Tinkler (Great Britain), canoeist Nadzeya Makarchanka (Belarus) and discus / shot put thrower Alexandra Emelianov (Moldova) - also received a trophy. Karalis has had a remarkable career already. He has broken the national pole vault record in the U-20 age category four times in the last season alone. He was a bronze medallist at the IAAF World Youth Championships in Cali (Colombia) in July 2015, was ranked 4th in the 2016 IAAF World Junior Championships in Bydgoszcz (Poland) and became 2016 European Youth Olympic Festival champion in Tbilisi (Georgia).

2016 October EOC Newsletter

He is currently the World Best Performance holder in pole vault with 5.55m (Indoor & Outdoor). This EOC award was created in 2010 to remember a dear friend to the organisation, Piotr Nurowski the late President of the Polish NOC and member of the EOC Executive Committee, who died in a plane accident in 2010. He had contributed greatly to the Olympic Movement for much of his life. Through his shining example, he encouraged young athletes to pursue a career in elite sport, as well as inspiring future generations to adopt a healthy lifestyle based on Olympic values and principles. The two Piotr Nurowski prizes are awarded annually. One is for athletes competing in summer sports and is awarded at the EOC General Assembly, and the other is for athletes competing in winter sports and is awarded at the EOC Seminar in spring.

Congratulations – After the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, in accordance with the Olympic Charter, NOCs are requested to hold elections. Results from the first elections are in and the EOC’s congratulations go to: - NOC of Croatia: Zlatko Mateša has been re-elected President of the Croatian NOC for the period running from 2016-2020. It will be his fifth term as the head of the organisation. Secretary General Josip Čop has also been re-elected. - NOC of Latvia: President Aldons Vrubļevskis and Secretary General Zorzs Tikmers have both been re-elected. - NOC of Lithuania: President Daina Gudzinevičiūtė and Secretary General Valentinas Paketūras have both been re- elected.

COMMISSIONS

The EOC Commission for European Union matters met on 5 October at the EOC EU Office, the House of European Sport, in Brussels, Belgium. The commission’s new chair Jüri Tamm and the office director Folker Hellmund welcomed participants to assess recent activities and discuss the future. Members received updated information on the main issues currently being dealt with by the Brussels office, including the implementation of Olympic Agenda 2020, the Good Governance/SIGGS project, funding for NOCs and the EU Sport Model. The EOC Athletes’ Commission chair Jean-Michel Saive also reported on his organisation’s work. Participants then had an opportunity to meet with Yves Le Lostecque, Head of the European Commission’s Sport Unit, and Bart Ooijen, former Chair of the Working Party on Sport during the Dutch EU Presidency, who were both invited as guest speakers. The commission presented their proposals to the EOC Executive Committee and then to the Minsk General Assembly.

EYOFs

ERZURUM 2017 – The EOC Coordination Commission for the upcoming Winter EYOF held a meeting on the morning of 21 October to review recent developments and preparations. The Erzurum delegation in Minsk included Deputy Undersecretary of the Turkish Ministry of Youth and Sports Kamuran Özden; General Coordinator Orhan Atasoy; Governor of Erzurum Seyfettin Azizoğlu; Turkish Sports General Director Memhmet Baykan; General Director of Sports and Head of Department of International Organisations - Turkish Ministry of Youth and Sports Hayrullah Ozan Çetiner; NOC Services Director of Erzurum 2017 Necati Keplan; and Deputy Secretary General Ünsal Kıraç, all of whom presented a progress report to the General Assembly. The official Turkish NOC delegation, including NOC President and IOC Vice-President Uğur Erdener, NOC Vice- President and EOC Board member Hasan Arat and Secretary General Neşe Gündoğan, observed the presentation.

GYÖR 2017 - The City of Györ, Hungary, which is organising the next summer EYOF, hosted a visit by the EYOF Coordination Commission (CoCom) and technical delegates from European NOCs. The visit took place in the last week of October and involved a thorough assessment of progress so far. The Organising Committee and CoCom spent several intense sessions with all Organising Committee departments and discussed preparations for each of the functional areas in detail. This was the first time that technical delegates had visited Györ in connection with the

2016 October EOC Newsletter

EYOF. They received a general presentation, made a detailed inspection of sports venues and discussed all organisational details with their respective sports counterparts in the Organising Committee. The outcome of the visit was very positive. The Organising Committee was deemed to have made great progress since the last CoCom visit one year ago. All functional areas were in very good shape: construction work at the Athletes´ Village and a new large-scale sports complex, which will host four different events, is running to schedule. Some of the test events have already been organised and others are planned for the upcoming months. Volunteer recruitment is also running successfully. Awareness of the event can not only be felt throughout Györ, but also across the entire country. The EYOF mascot, Hugoo, has become a popular figure, taking part in all public events organised in Györ. Both the CoCom and the technical delegates were said to have left Györ with very positive feelings and a strong belief that Györ 2017 will be a successful event. The Chefs de Mission meeting will be held in Györ from 25 to 28 April 2017. The event itself is due to take place from 22 to 30 July 2017.

ENOCs

BELARUS – This month, the NOC of Belarus celebrated the 25th anniversary of its constitution with a variety of events. Not only was the 45th EOC General Assembly in Minsk opened by the President of the Republic and President of the NOC Alexander Lukashenko but there was also a gala evening held on 21 October at the National Academic Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theatre of the Republic of Belarus. Olympic champions, famous coaches, employees of physical culture and sport, journalists and participants in the 45th EOC General Assembly all attended the celebration. Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic Natalia Kachanova opened the gala evening, which started with the film "The NOC of Belarus - 25 years", documenting the most significant achievements in Belarusian sport and the history of the NOC.

BELGIUM – On 26 October, Belgium’s most elite guests were received at the Royal Palace in Laeken. King Philippe, Queen Mathilde and Princess Astrid invited athletes who took part in the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Rio to the reception. Guests included 250 athletes and coaches, NOC President Pierre-Olivier Beckers, NOC CEO Philippe Vander Putten, Rio 2016 Chef de Mission Eddy De Smedt, the NOC Board of Directors and several presidents of relevant federations.

ISRAEL – The NOC of Israel held its 44th annual ceremony in memory of the 11 victims at the Munich 1972 Olympic Games this month. The memory of the 11 victims was honored as hundreds gathered at the ceremony, including NOC leaders President Igal Carmi and CEO Gilad Lustig, IOC Member Alex Gilady, the German Ambassador to Israel Clemens von Goetze, and representatives of the Israeli Government and Tel- Aviv Municipality. Also in attendance were Munich 1972 Games survivors; families of the 11 victims, who attended with their grandchildren and great- grandchildren; Olympic athletes; members of the Rio 2016 delegation; and many other guests. President Carmi noted that, for the first time, the IOC held a memorial ceremony at the Olympic Village in Rio. “I thank Dr. Thomas Bach for commemorating the victims and remembering the horrific event that took place during the Olympic Games in Munich. The fact that this event will also be held during Tokyo 2020 shows that the ceremony will become part of the Olympic Games.”

ITALY – The School of Sport celebrated its 50th birthday this month. It was 1966 when the iconic Italian NOC (CONI) President Giulio Onesti founded the institution. Over the years, it has brought prestige to the Italian sports movement, laying foundations for a tradition that has become a source of pride and an example worldwide. On Wednesday 5 October, the opening meeting was attended by CONI President Giovanni Malagò, CONI Secretary General Roberto Fabbricini and Director of the School Rossana Ciuffetti, together with many Masters of Sport (former students from the first years of the school who are now sports leaders in different positions), sports representatives, athletes and media.

2016 October EOC Newsletter

A week of activities reflected the school’s focus on study, research, reflection and the transmission of knowledge. Onesti, who was convinced that the development of Italian sport could only be realised through education and culture, built the school within the Sports Complex Acqua Acetosa, which was built for the Rome 1960 Olympic Games. The school offers Masters of Sport courses and specialisation for technicians and professional figures operating in the sports world. Many champions who attended the school, as well as coaches, researchers, scientists, professionals and educators, have all contributed to the growth of this institution. Over the years, the School of Sport has built up a valuable library, which President Malagò intends to increase and open to the general public in the near future.

MOLDOVA – The bilingual Romanian-English album "25 years of the National Olympic Committee and Sports of the Republic of Moldova" was launched on 27 October at the NOC headquarters. The album, which was created by Natalia Donets, Lucia Juravschi and Cristina Vasilianov, offers a visual retrospective of Moldova’s participation in the Rome 1960 Olympic Games. The event brought together members of the Olympic family, including Olympic medallists, athletes, coaches, presidents and secretaries of federations, and teachers of physical education, among others. The event concluded with a range of activities celebrating 25 years since the NOC of the Republic of Moldova was founded. Among the guests was the Minister of Culture Monica Babuc, who congratulated the NOC and handed President Nicolae Juravschi a Diploma of Honour for the restoration of the former building, a historical architectural monument. Babuc stressed that both athletes and artists are true messengers who take the country’s reputation abroad. To conclude the ceremony, Olympic family members symbolically planted trees in front of the Olympic House.

SPAIN – NOC President Alejandro Blanco welcomed more than 25 directors of marketing from different NOCs and prestigious international experts to the Spanish NOC’s headquarters. They gathered in Madrid to attend the IOC’s two- day seminar on marketing. The seminar was organised on 11 October by Secretary General of the Spanish NOC Victor Sánchez and his team and was conducted by Natascha Trittis, NOC Marketing Training Manager at the IOC. Among the topics addressed by delegates were a thorough analysis of all matters relating to the controversial Rule 40 of the Olympic Charter, the use of an athlete’s image during the Olympic Games, and national Olympic team uniforms. Among the attendees were the most senior marketing officers from the NOCs of Australia, the United States, Russia, Italy, Canada, Brazil, Holland, China, France and Japan, as well as representatives from ANOC and the Olympic Channel. Participants all had the opportunity to visit the new and spacious facilities of the recently launched Olympic Channel in Madrid.

EUROPEAN GAMES

Minsk, the capital of Belarus, has been confirmed as the host of the second edition of the European Games in 2019 after NOC members of the EOC voted to approve the city’s candidacy at its General Assembly. The delegates delivered a large majority vote in favour of the city hosting the Games. Minsk has a strong reputation for staging high-level competitions in Olympic sports, having hosted the UCI Track Cycling World Championships and the EUBC European Boxing Championships in 2013, the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship in 2014, and the ISU European Speed Skating Championships earlier this year. President of the Republic of Belarus and NOC President Alexander Lukashenko gave an address to delegates in which he said: “I am glad to announce that Belarus is ready to host the second European Games in 2019. Belarus has a modern infrastructure and facilities capable of staging international competition at the highest level.” Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, hosted the inaugural European Games in 2015, which featured 20 sports and provided Rio 2016 qualification opportunities for European athletes across 12 sports.

2016 October EOC Newsletter

EOC acting President Janez Kocijančič said: “I am delighted that the General Assembly has voted to bring the European Games to Minsk in 2019. Minsk has excellent sports facilities and their initial proposal is to use as much existing infrastructure as possible to create a Games concept suited to their national sports identity. This has the benefit of making the Games more affordable and sustainable for Belarus. “I would particularly like to thank the President of the Republic of Belarus for his passion for sport, which has been the driving force for Minsk’s candidacy and will, I am sure, lead to a very successful second edition of the Games in 2019 for the athletes of Europe.”

OLYMPIC GAMES

PYEONGCHANG 2018 – On 19 October, the PyeongChang 2018 Organising Committee President Lee Hee-beom participated in the first World Winter Sports Expo and Forum in Beijing, helping to build strong partnerships for the Olympic Games. Lee met with Guo Jinlong, President of the Beijing Organising Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and Liu Peng, President of the NOC and Executive President of Beijing 2022, to discuss plans to strengthen cooperation among the organising committees for PyeongChang 2018, Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022. The three sports leaders also exchanged ideas to efficiently transfer operational knowledge, provide opportunities to utilise sponsorship and competition venues, and organise joint projects. The meeting with Beijing 2022 organisers attracted attention at the World Winter Sports Expo. Representatives from Korea, China and Japan are all due to attend the Rio 2016 Debriefing, scheduled to be held in in Tokyo this November.

TOKYO 2020 – The Organising Committee for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games hosted a “Tokyo 2020 New Sport Support Kickoff Event” to promote the five new sports that were added to the Olympic programme in August. The event was held on Monday 10 October and marked the 50th anniversary of the creation of Sport and Health Day in Japan, as part of the Tokyo 2020 Official Programme of sport and health. The event venue included a booth introducing the Organising Committee as well as booths introducing the new sports: baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing and surfing. Attendees were able to have manga style photos taken of themselves, incorporating graphics depicting the new sports. In addition, young athletes competing in the new sports gathered on the venue's stage to discuss their thoughts about the Tokyo 2020 Games and the appeal of their sport.

CANDIDATE CITIES 2024 – – Budapest, Los Angeles and Paris are the three cities still in the running to stage the 2024 Olympic Games after Rome’s candidature was withdrawn on 11 October by CONI President Giovanni Malagò, who sent an official letter to the IOC. During a press conference at the CONI headquarters, Giovanni Malagò warmly thanked the We Want Roma 2024 team and announced Milan’s bid to stage the 2019 IOC Session. The 2017 Session will be held in Lima, Peru and the 2018 session will take place during the Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang.

WORLD ANTIDOPING AGENCY

This month, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) published its Independent Observer Team’s (IO Team) Report concerning the anti-doping programme at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. In accordance with the World Anti-Doping Code, WADA is invited by the IOC to send an IO Team to the Olympic Games. The role of the IO Team is to help instil confidence in both athletes and the public as to the quality, effectiveness and reliability of the IOC’s anti-doping programme for the Games; to provide

2016 October EOC Newsletter

feedback and suggest areas of possible “real-time” improvement to the programme; and to make recommendations within its post-Games report for potential improvements for future editions. “The anti-doping programme, which was implemented and overseen by the IOC, was able to achieve a number of positive outcomes in the face of very challenging circumstances in Rio,” said IO Team Chair Jonathan Taylor. “Despite staffing issues, resource constraints and other logistical difficulties, those tasked with implementation of the programme, and in particular the volunteers, deserve immense credit for ensuring that the rights of clean athletes were safeguarded,” he continued. The IO Team monitored all aspects of the anti-doping programme in Rio, including test distribution planning; the selection of competitors for testing; notification of doping control; the Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) procedure; chain of custody; sample analysis; and results management. As is the case following all IO Team missions, the report includes a number of recommendations for the IOC, the Organising Committee, the WADA-accredited laboratory and WADA, all of which are designed to further enhance anti-doping activities at future Games

MISCELLANEOUS

ENGSO Forum 2016 – The annual European Non-Governmental Sports Organisation (ENGSO) Forum was held in Sofia, Bulgaria from 28 to 29 October. The Forum was opened by ENGSO President Carlos Cardoso, who greeted all the participants, including ENGSO members, partners, representatives of the National Olympic Committees, sports organisations and confederations, universities, European Commission members and other guests. As Sofia was proclaimed European Capital of Sport in 2018, a presentation about future plans and projects was presented to the attendees. The programme included an EU seminar, as well as sessions on good governance, gender equality and security of sports facilities. During the EU seminar, the Head of the Sport Unit of the European Commission Yves Le Lostecque gave an update on both the EU sports policy and developments relating to the Erasmus+ Sport programme. ENGSO Policy Director Heidi Pekkola opened the discussion on the EU Sports Work Plan and the position of grassroots sports organisations. The seminar concluded with a presentation on the ASPIRE project, which is dedicated to the social inclusion of refugees, by ENGSO Policy and Communication Officer Orsolya Tolnay. The EOC EU Office in Brussels, of which ENGSO is one of its 25 partners, is very pleased about this development, as it has been actively asking for simplifications to the programme to make it more accessible to grassroots sports. The second day started with a session on good governance. Policy Officer Valentin Capelli from the EOC EU Office presented the SIGGS project, providing information on its main project outcome, the SIGGS self-evaluation tool, which will be launched at the end of November. The session on good governance also had a particular focus on gender equality. The forum finished with a session on the security of sports facilities. In 2017, the ENGSO Forum will be held alongside the General Assembly in Paris at the beginning of June.