The election of the Korean candidate for the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes’ Commission is a hot topic in the sports world. It’s a chance to be at the pinnacle of sports diplomacy. The IOC Athletes’ Commission was established in 1981 by then IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch. Its main task is to represent IOC athletes. The Korean Athletes’ Association (KAA) has selected golf gold medalist Park In-bee as the Korean candidate through a senate meeting. The decision will be finalized today by the athletes’ committee of the KOC. With a strong field of candidates, it’s a virtual lock. In addition to Park, a living legend who won a gold medal at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games and has 21 career victories on the LPGA Tour, the nominees are Jin Jong-oh (shooting), Kim Yeon-kyung (volleyball), Lee Dae-hoon (taekwondo) and Kim So-young (badminton). Previous IOC athletes from South Korea include Athens 2004 gold medalist Moon Dae-sung and Yoo Seung-min, president of the Korea Table Tennis Association. Yoo’s term expires in August 2024.
The Olympic Charter and the IOC Athletes’ Commission
The rationale for the Athletes’ Commission can be found in the Olympic Charter. The Olympic Charter is a legal document created by the IOC and contains all the basic rules for the Olympic Movement. The Athletes’ Commission is also governed by the IOC Athletes’ Commission Regulations. The Athletes’ Commission is composed of a majority of members elected by the athletes participating in the Olympic Games, and elections are held in the host city of the Summer or Winter Olympic Games in accordance with regulations adopted by the IOC Executive Board. Any regulations or procedures of the IOC Athletes’ Commission are adopted by the IOC Executive Board after consultation with the Athletes’ Commission.
Composition of the IOC Athletes’ Commission
The Athletes’ Commission may have up to 23 members, all of whom are active athletes. According to the Athletes’ Commission Statutes, an athlete is defined as an athlete who, at the time of election or appointment, is competing in or has previously competed in an Olympic Games. The Commission consists of 12 members elected by the Olympic Games (8 for the Summer Games and 4 for the Winter Games) and up to 11 appointed by the IOC President. The number of appointed members cannot exceed the number of elected members. The Commission has a chairman and two vice-chairmen. Currently, IOC Athlete Commissioner Yoo Seung-min is the vice-chair. The Athlete Commissioners, who serve an eight-year term, have the same qualifications as ordinary IOC members.
Duties of the IOC Athletes’ Commission
One of its most important tasks is to represent athletes in the Olympic Movement and to support them in their sporting and non-sporting success. They must also respect the prevention of match-fixing, other regulations issued by the IOC, the World Anti-Doping Code, the Olympic Charter, the Code of Ethics and the Olympic Movement Code. Athletes’ Commissioners are obliged to attend the meetings set out in the Commission Statutes. These include one to two Athlete Commission meetings per year, four to five Athlete Commission video conferences, three to four conferences with the global athlete network, one meeting with the IOC Executive Board, the biennial IOC International Athlete Forum, the Youth Olympic Games and the General Assembly.스포츠토토
The IOC validates the candidates submitted by the National Olympic Committees (NOCs), shortlists them, and the four Athletes will be voted on at the Paris Olympics. Sports diplomacy is the way to go.