In Sochi, like two years earlier in London, Olympic athletes will also be voters. In Russia, nine of them are candidates for the IOC Athletes' Commission. They will compete for two places. Voting, open to all participants in the Sochi Games, officially opens this Thursday, January 30. It will end on February 19. The announcement of the results will be made the next day, Thursday February 20, at 14 p.m., at the press center of the Olympic village in Sochi.
To run, candidates must participate in the Sochi Games or have taken part in those in Vancouver in 2010. They are not entitled to campaign, the IOC rules being very strict on this point. They barely had the opportunity to publish a declaration, in English and French, in the same format for all applicants, which appears in the document given to all those selected at the Games.
In Sochi, polling stations are located in restaurants in all Olympic villages. They are open every day from 8:00 a.m. to 21:00 p.m. Clarification: voters must choose two of the nine candidates, representing two different sports. The two elected officials must then be approved by the IOC Session. They will then replace the Canadian Rebecca Scott (cross-country skiing) and the Finn Saku Koivu (ice hockey), whose mandate ends this winter.
The nine candidates:
Kilian Albrecht. Bulgaria – Alpine skiing. 40 years. Two Olympic participations (2006 and 2010). President of the Athletes' Commission of the International Ski Federation from 2009 to 2013. Speaks Bulgarian, English and French.
Ole Einar Bjorndalen. Norway. Biathlon. 40 years. The greatest biathlete in history, eleven times medalist at the Games since 1998. Spokesperson and member of the Athletes' Commission of the International Biathlon Union since 2002.
Didier Cuche. Swiss. Alpine skiing. 39 years old. Super-G world champion in 2009, Olympic silver medalist in the same discipline in 1998. Four Olympic participations. Speaks French, German and English.
Darya Domracheva. Belarus. Biathlon. 27 years old. World champion in pursuit in 2012 and mass start in 2013. Member of the Athletes' Commission of the International Biathlon Union.
Ana Jelusic. Croatia. Alpine skiing. 27 years old. Three Olympic participations. Media coordinator at the International Ski Federation (FIS).
Pietro Piller-Cottrer. Italy. Cross-country skiing. 39 years old. Four-time Olympic medalist, including a 4x10 km relay title in 2006. Police officer.
Tanja Poutiainen. Finland. Alpine skiing. 33 Years. Four Olympic participations, silver medalist in giant in 2006.
Sarka Strachova. Czech Republic. Alpine skiing. 28 years old. World slalom champion in 2007, Olympic silver medalist in the same event in 2010. Marketing and public relations consultant for sports agencies.
Hayley Wickenheiser. Canada. Ice Hockey. 35 years. Olympic champion in 2002, 2006 and 2010. Coordinator of the athlete support program at the International Hockey Federation. The only representative of ice sports among the nine candidates in this election.
