A page is turning in the Olympic world. The Games candidacy process will soon undergo the most radical reform in its long history. In the words of Thomas Bach, the President of the IOC, it will become “ flexible ", in every sense of the word. It was time.
Faced with a shortage of candidates, the IOC decided to react. A working group was formed to work on the matter. Led by a history of the house, the Australian John Coates, it is made up of the Slovakian Danka Bartekova, the Argentinian Gerardo Werthein, the Burundian Lydia Nsekera and the Chinese Li Lingwei. They must propose a reform of the process at the next IOC session, scheduled for June 24 to 26, 2019 in Lausanne.
Its content remains unclear. But Thomas Bach assured him last weekend, during a telephone press conference organized from the brand new headquarters of the institution: nothing will be the same again. A revolution, nothing less.
First change, the most innovative: the end of the sacrosanct “ 7 year rule. » Thomas Bach explained it: “ A host city may be chosen before or after. We want more flexibility. » Clearly, the IOC reserves the right to award the Games without setting a precise date for the end of the race. Less than 7 years before the Games, or on the contrary 8 or 10 years in advance. The intention is laudable. It remains to find a process that holds up and guarantees equal opportunities to all contenders. Not easy.
The rest is to match, radical but still very enigmatic. Thomas Bach announced it: the future application process could involve two or more cities, as is the case today, or on the contrary just one. “ A unique city could be proposed by the executive commission if it is judged to stand out from the rest.. The IOC session would then be reduced to a registration chamber, called to validate a choice already made by the executive commission and the candidacies commission.
Flexibility, then. At all levels. It will apply to the number of candidate cities and the duration of the process. And even, suggested Thomas Bach, in the application file. Asked about a possible Sapporo project for the 2030 Winter Games where events could be held in Beijing and PyeongChang, the IOC President replied: “ We will encourage applicants to look for solutions outside their borders if they do not have certain facilities and do not need to build them. »
Thomas Bach is convinced of this: a more flexible process will allow both “ make fewer losers” and to encourage battered cities to relaunch the adventure four years later. It remains for the working group led by John Coates to invent a credible and convincing reform. His project will be presented at the end of the month at the IOC session. In the event of validation, which is very likely, the working group will give way to a commission of future host cities. She will have a major role to play in the future of the Olympic institution.
