It was about time. A little over three months after revealing the list of seven candidates for its presidency, the IOC has (finally) ticked a new box on the very meager campaign calendar. On Thursday, December 19, it published the manifestos of the candidates to succeed Thomas Bach. The " application documents », according to the expression of the instance, on which each side will rely during the 15-minute oral presentation before the members, on January 30, 2025 in Lausanne.
The IOC specifies that they were all received before the deadline. A good point for the candidates. The body also points out that their online publication "is an important aspect of transparency and good governance in the presidential election." Sure. The public and the media will be able to get an idea of each person's projects," it emphasizes.
What should we remember from this? A lot of things. We expected it. The opposite would have been worrying for the future of the Olympic movement.
Less expected: the candidates' programs sometimes turn out to be full of surprises. And even a little more than that. At least one of them deserves the prize for audacity, by proposing a real revolution in the organization of the Olympic Games.
The form, first. It is not the most important thing in a campaign whose outcome is supposed to commit the future of the movement for at least eight years, and probably four more. But it cannot be ignored.
Three of the candidates, only three out of seven, submit their application documents in three languages: English, French and Spanish. David Lappartient, Feisal Al Hussein and Kirsty Coventry made the effort. It is never insignificant. Juan Antonio Samaranch preferred English and Spanish. Johan Eliasch, Sebastian Coe and Morinari Watanabe kept it shorter, with an English version and nothing more. Did they forget Pierre de Coubertin?
Still on the subject of form, the manifestos display differences in length that speak volumes about the applicants' ability to keep things short. Morinari Watanabe summarized his vision and program in five pages. Very powerful. At the other end of the bench, Juan Antonio Samaranch needed about forty to express his. The other five chose a middle path by setting out their ideas in about twenty pages.
Now the substance. It is difficult to summarize, as the candidates worked so hard on their subject and tried, sometimes successfully, to reconcile the conventional and the more personal, the obligatory passages (sustainability, heritage, inclusion, etc.) and new ideas, the blah blah and the concrete. But a few points stand out.
Sebastian Coe, the oldest of the group (he turned 68 on September 29), wants to dust off the principle of election. The Briton proposes to be elected for an initial term of four years – compared to eight in the current format – and then to put his presidency back into play in a referendum. He would then ask members to vote on his record to decide whether or not to keep their confidence in him. Why not.
Juan Antonio Samaranch suggests raising the age limit for retaining IOC membership, currently set at 70, to 75. A good way, according to the Spaniard, to avoid " to arbitrarily lose the benefits of experience and knowledge." He also wants the selection of the host city for the Games, both summer and winter, to no longer be the privilege of the Executive Board - with simple ratification by the session - but to be returned to the IOC members. In short, a return to the old formula of a vote with several choices.
Feisal Al Hussein also suggests raising the age limit for IOC members to 75. The Jordanian also proposes the establishment of an "Olympic Agenda 2036", which would include reviewing the format of the Youth Games, to make them a mix between a sporting event and a cultural festival.
Kirsty Coventry plays the athlete card. Not exactly a scoop. The former Zimbabwean swimmer, often presented as Thomas Bach's candidate, also takes up some of the German leader's priorities, including the importance of artificial intelligence and the urgency of engaging new generations, via social networks and e-sports.
Johan Eliasch, the surprise candidate of the campaign, wants to completely overhaul the format and program of the Games. No less. He announces, in the event of victory, " a review of all sports and formats to maximize their appeal to fans”. A great battle in perspective in the corridors of the Olympic movement.
David Lappartient is the most concrete of the bunch. Like his rivals, the Frenchman does not refrain from taking up the major priorities of the moment, repeated in all circumstances, but he adds more personal ideas. Let us cite, in bulk, a reduction in the number of IOC commissions, an increase in the number of members of the body to give a greater place to athletes, and the holding of an Olympic Congress that would bring together all the players in the movement. Other proposals: parity among members by 2036 and Olympic Games in Africa.
The best for last. Morinari Watanabedoes not only deserve the prize for conciseness, with a five-page program. The Japanese can also claim the most audacious jersey. His idea: Olympic Games organized simultaneously in five cities on five continents, continuously, 24 hours a day, with 10 sports per host city for a record total of 50 sports. The same formula would be reproduced at the Winter Games. Advantage: a reduced cost for each of the organizers and an opening to countries previously absent from the map. Games for the whole world. You had to dare.
