A decisive week in the race for the IOC presidency. Candidates to succeed Thomas Bach at the head of the Olympic body must have sent their letters of intent by Sunday, September 15 at the latest. The list of eligible candidates will be revealed the following day.
Anything but coincidence: the IOC members received this week a letter signed by Ban Ki-moon, the former UN Secretary-General, who chairs the Ethics Commission. It is dated September 9. The document specifies the requirements for being elected to the presidency of the body next March, during the 143rd session organized in Greece.
Their reading reveals several parameters that significantly reduce the list of potential successors to Thomas Bach. Two of them, in particular, could seriously tighten the casting.
At the top of the list is the question of age. The letter signed by Ban Ki-moon explains in black and white that the future president " must be a member of the IOC at the time of election and for the entire duration of his term of office”The mandate in question is set at eight years, with a possible extension of four years.
A candidate who is too old, likely to be sent to the honorary membership during the eight years between 2025 and 2033, is therefore potentially excluded from the presidential campaign.
Designated victim: Sebastian Coe. The president of World Athletics does not hide his ambition to succeed Thomas Bach. He confirmed at the end of the Paris 2024 Games his wish to " think seriously if the opportunity arose. » The only problem, but a big one: the Briton is 67 years old. He will therefore be well past the age limit of 70 during a possible eight-year term.
The document states: “ A member reaching the age limit of 70 will lose his or her membership in the IOC, unless he or she is proposed by the Executive Board and elected by the Session for a four-year extension. The Olympic Charter provides for such an extension only once.
Another criterion detailed by Ban Ki-moon: the function. An IOC Member elected to office who loses that office during his or her term of office as an IOC Member, including as IOC President, will automatically lose his or her membership in the IOC and, as such, his or her term of office will end. » Understand: a president of an international federation who is no longer a president during his mandate at the IOC would automatically lose his status as a member of the Olympic body.
Sebastian Coe is once again the target. The Briton joined the IOC in his capacity as president of World Athletics. His final term at the head of the body will end in 2027. He will, in effect, lose his status as an IOC member.
Another potential victim of this rule: David Lappartient. Close to Thomas Bach, the Frenchman is sometimes cited among the potential candidates. He joined the IOC in 2020 within the college of international federations. He owed this to his role as president of l'Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). But, like Sebastian Coe, David Lappartient will end his potential third and final term at the head of the UCI in 2029. He should then lose his status as an IOC member, four years before the end of the eight-year term of the future president of the Olympic body (2033).
Morinari Watanabe, the Japanese president of the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), could also see his ambitions curbed by the office criterion. He joined the IOC in 2018 and will be 66 at the time of the election session. He also owes his membership status to his position as president of an international body.
These are the three possible candidates most concerned by the clarifications provided this week by Ban Ki-moon.
The winners of the affair? Let us name four, whose names also recur among the possible, even probable, candidates.
Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr. The Spaniard is an individual member of the IOC. He is therefore not affected by the rule related to the function. Aged 64, he could benefit from an extension to remain at the IOC until 2033. He therefore ticks both boxes.
Kirsty Coventry, 40, an individual member, also meets the criteria. Nicole Hoevertsz is also a perfect match. Aged 60, an individual member, the former artistic swimmer from Aruba is vice-president of the IOC.
Finally, the eligibility criteria favor another candidacy, less often cited but very likely, that of Prince Feisal Al Hussein of Jordan. He joined the IOC in 2010 as an individual member and will be 61 next month. The Jordanian is a member of the Executive Board. He ticks the boxes of age and function. According to our information, he will be a candidate. With the ambition of becoming the first IOC President from the Asian continent.
