Sports Bulletin

Sports Bulletin Report LAHORE:-IOC Olympic Solidarity has awarded Olympic Scholarships to 12 Pakistani athletes of different 7 sports disciplines for the training and preparation of the top quadrennial sports event of the world Summer Olympic Games 2024, which will be taken place in Paris, France. According to secretary, Pakistan Olympic Association (POA), Mohammad Khalid Mahmood, International Olympic Committee (IOC) Olympic Solidarity awarded scholarships to 12 Pakistani athletes on the request of POA. The program has been designed for the elite athletes who are training, and attempting to qualify, for the Summer Olympic Games Paris 2024. The Olympic scholarship will start on 1 January 2022 and will be divided into separate terms running for a four-month period each until 31 August 2024. Each athlete will be awarded US$650 per month scholarship for preparation of the Summer Olympic Games Paris 2024. President POA, Lt Gen (Retd) Syed Arif Hasan congratulated and wished all athletes and respective National Federation/Services / Departments a very successful training and preparation venture to qualify for the Summer Olympic Games Paris 2024. Names of players: Arshad Nadeem (Athletics), Mahoor Shahzad (Badminton), Usman Chand (Shooting), Gulfam Joseph (Shooting), Anna Ibtisam (Shooting), Kishmala Talat (Shooting), Rasam Gull (Shooting), Jehanara Nabi (Swimming), Perniya Zaman Khan (Table Tennis), Mohammad Nooh Dastgir Butt (Weightlifting), Mohammad Bilal (Wrestling), Mohammad Inam (Wrestling).

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, and the Ukrainian Minister for Youth and Sport, Vadym Guttsait, visited Ukrainian athletes who are currently living and training in Switzerland. President Bach and Minister Guttsait, both Olympic champions in fencing, were accompanied by Sergii Bubka, President of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Ukraine, IOC Member in Ukraine and Olympic pole vault champion. The Ukrainian athletes currently training abroad have not returned home following the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian army, supported by Belarus, on 24 February 2022. Since the start of the war, the IOC has led the solidarity efforts of the Olympic Movement to help the Olympic Community in Ukraine. The IOC has set up a Solidarity Fund and provided – together with Olympic Solidarity – USD 1 million. The European Olympic Committees (EOC) has provided funding of USD 0.5 million. With the donations received from Olympic Movement stakeholders, this fund now totals over USD 2 million and is currently being distributed. The efforts of the IOC and the Olympic Movement are being coordinated by a task force, which is being led by Sergii Bubka . The support aims at enabling Ukrainian athletes to continue taking part in international competitions. It takes the form not just of financial aid, but also logistical support, travel support, offering training facilities, accommodation, equipment and uniforms, amongst other things. Over Easter, Sergii Bubka and Minister Guttsait visited a number of training centres in Ukraine and met with athletes. This week they continued their visits to Ukrainian athletes abroad. On Thursday, IOC President Bach, Minister Guttsait and NOC President Bubka went to the UCI World Cycling Centre (WCC) in Aigle, Switzerland, where they were welcomed by the President of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and IOC Member in France, David Lappartient. They watched BMX and track cycling training sessions and met 30 BMX, track and mountain bike athletes. Three of them are currently training at the WCC, while 27 others have been evacuated by Swiss Cycling and are currently training and residing in the Swiss National Centre. It is not just Ukrainian athletes who are preparing for competitions in Aigle and using the World Cycling Centre as their base – cyclists from Afghanistan are also being hosted here. Samira Asghari, IOC Member in Afghanistan, joined the IOC President and the Ukrainian delegation during their visit to 23 road discipline athletes who have joined the WCC following the humanitarian crisis in their country and have been given the chance to build a new life in Switzerland. The support the IOC is extending to the Olympic Community in Ukraine is not unique, but similar to the support extended to other members of the global Olympic Community. It is based on solidarity, one of the fundamental values for which the Olympic Movement stands. “It was moving to meet and hear from the Ukrainian athletes who are affected by the terrible war in their country. There are dozens of cyclists and hundreds of Ukrainian athletes in other sports who can continue participating in international competitions through the help of the IOC and many stakeholders of the Olympic Movement like the UCI. I want to thank all of them,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. He continued: “It was particularly touching to see that Ukrainian and Afghan athletes are both benefiting from the solidarity of the Olympic Movement. This reflects the true Olympic spirit. We will continue supporting Ukrainian and Afghan athletes in the same way as we support other members of the global Olympic Community who are affected by war and aggression.” The Ukrainian Minister for Youth and Sport, Vadym Guttsait, said: “I would like to express my gratitude for the solidarity and the efforts of the IOC and the international sport community to support Ukrainian people and Ukrainian athletes. We welcome the rapid decisions taken by the IOC with regard to Russia and Belarus, which have sent a clear and strong signal to the entire sport community that the IOC stands with Ukraine in this difficult time. I also want to thank the Olympic Movement for the solidarity fund set up to support our community, and in particular the Ukrainian NOC President, Sergii Bubka, who helps with the coordination efforts and stands by our side every day.” Minister Guttsait informed the IOC President about the Ukrainian proposal to all stakeholders in the sporting sector that they become sponsors of the re-birth of sports clubs and sports infrastructure in Ukraine after the war is over. “This is a great initiative. The IOC is fully supportive of this project,” said the IOC President. “The IOC’s support for the Olympic Community in Ukraine will continue. We are offering to coordinate this initiative with the worldwide Olympic Community, and are very confident that the big wave of solidarity with Ukraine involving many stakeholders of the movement will not end. We will encourage them to go on and will lead by example.” Minister Guttsait thanked the IOC President for this offer: “This is a continuation of the strong and fruitful cooperation between the IOC and Ukraine over the years,” he said. Just last September, the IOC President visited the country to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the NOC of Ukraine. On this occasion, the IOC President also met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and received the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise. President Bach, Minister Guttsait and NOC President Bubka also discussed the unfolding situation in Ukraine during a meeting at Olympic House in Lausanne. The IOC had – in consultation with Ukrainian NOC President Sergii Bubka –immediately condemned the war and the breach of the Olympic Truce when the Russian invasion of Ukraine started on 24 February 2022. At that time already, the IOC urged all International Sports Federations (IFs) not to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials to take part in international competitions, to ensure the integrity and fairness of the global competition. It also recommended to the IFs to relocate all planned competitions from Russia and Belarus . In addition, a number of members of the Russian government, including the President of the Russian Federation, were sanctioned for breaching the Olympic Truce. The IOC also suspended the tender process for the media rights sales for the territories of Belarus and the Russian Federation for Milano Cortina 2026 and Los Angeles 2028. The Ukrainian Sports Minister welcomed this strong message from the IOC and the fact that the vast majority of IFs are following the IOC recommendations. President Bach and Minister Guttsait noted that the support for the Ukrainian Olympic Community is only possible because of the close cooperation between the NOC of Ukraine, under its President Sergii Bubka, and the Ukrainian Ministry for Youth and Sport. The IOC President emphasised that the IOC will continue to undertake every effort to support the right of Ukrainian athletes to train and participate in global competitions wherever practically possible. The IOC President, Minister Guttsait and Sergii Bubka also discussed calls for further sanctions in the sporting sector. The IOC President made it clear that the IOC supports sanctions against anybody in the Olympic Community who is in support of the war, and continues to monitor the situation as indicated in the “Give Peace a Chance” message of 11 March 2022. He also reaffirmed that, naturally, the Olympic Movement respects the measures being taken by respective governments.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-The International Olympic Committee (IOC) Member Alex Gilady passed away at the age of 79, as the IOC expressed its deepest sympathies to Alex Gilady’s family. As a mark of respect, the Olympic flag will be flown at half-mast at Olympic House in Lausanne for three days. A pioneer of television at the Olympic Games, he was first a sports commentator (1968), then Head of Sports (1975), Special Operations (1977), Vice President (1981-1996) and Senior Vice President of NBC Sports, the longstanding Olympic Rights-Holding Broadcaster in the United States of America. His contribution to Olympic broadcasting was recognised by the IOC with his appointment in 1984 to the Radio and Television Commission (in which he stayed until 2015), and 10 years later with his election as an IOC Member. IOC President Thomas Bach said: “With the passing of Alex Gilady we are losing a pioneer of the modern Olympic Movement, particularly in regard to broadcasting, but also far beyond that. He has always stood up for the Olympic values, often when sometimes the situation was not easy for him. “We all appreciated his open personality and his frank way of speaking even if we did not always agree, because with Alex we always knew that he was speaking from the heart.  He was always a genuine person.” President Bach added: “In Alex I have lost a dear friend who advised, inspired and supported me in many respects. In fact, it was Alex who convinced me in 1996 to run for a seat on the  Executive Board for the first time. Since then, he has always been at my side. Above all, he was a great man and a wonderful friend.” Recently, as Vice-Chair of the IOC Coordination Commission for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, Gilady established excellent relationships with some of the key members of the Organising Committee. This paved the way to finding solutions for the many issues that had to be addressed, particularly around the unprecedented postponement of the Games. In this role, he made full use of all his experience in the Coordination Commissions for the previous four Olympic Games – Athens 2004 (1998-2004), Beijing 2008 (2002-2008), London 2012 (2005-2012) and Rio 2016 (2010-2016) – and, since 2017, he was already deploying this as part of the Coordination Commission for Paris 2024. Gilady was also a member of the Board of Directors of Olympic Channel Services S.L., Spain (2015-2022) and other IOC commissions, namely International Relations (2014-2015), Public Affairs and Social Development through Sport (2015-2022) and Communications (2015-2022). Following a playing career in second and third division football and basketball, he moved on to take up more roles in sports administration as Chairman of the Television Commission at the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF, now World Athletics) between 1985 and 2008 (after which he retired and became Honorary Chairman for life), and Chairman of the TV Council at the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) between 2004 and 2019.  Educated at the Naval College, Mevo'ot Yam, Michmoret, in 2007 Gilady was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Philosophy by Haifa University, also in Israel. The vast majority of his many awards, though, came from his work in television, in which he was also the founder, President and CEO of Keshet Broadcasting Ltd, a commercial television franchise in Israel, from 1993 to 1999. He took over the Presidency of Keshet Broadcasting again in 2005, a position he occupied until 2017. Gilady was the recipient of seven Emmy Academy Awards for the Olympic Games Barcelona 1992, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000, Salt Lake City 2002, Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and London 2012; and an Award for Best Journalistic Story with the subject “The Sea” in 1970.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) has confirmed that the 2026 Commonwealth Games will be hosted by the State of Victoria in Australia and that squash will be one of the initial 16 sports on the programme. The announcement follows a successful exclusive dialogue period between the CGF, Commonwealth Games Australia (CGAus) and Victoria, where an exciting proposal to stage the major multi-sport competition across the State was agreed. The proposal capitalises on the 2026/30 Strategic Roadmap, which provides renewed flexibility to be innovative and creative in delivering the Games. In what will be a first ever predominantly regional Commonwealth Games, Victoria 2026 will be staged in March 2026 across multiple cities and regional hubs including Melbourne, Geelong, Bendigo, Ballarat and Gippsland. The Opening Ceremony will take place at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground. The approach will showcase the best of what the State has to offer and ensure a uniquely Victorian experience for the athletes and spectators. There will be a phased approach in creating the sports programme for Victoria 2026. An initial 16 sports have been put forward for the Games, with further sports to be added later this year. The CGF, CGAus and Victoria entered an exclusive dialogue period in February 2022. A CGF and CGAus visit to Victoria took place later that month. This was followed by a Victoria 2026 delegation presenting their 2026 Games Proposal to the CGF Executive Board in Birmingham, England in March 2022. The Proposal has now been approved by the CGF Executive Board, with the Host Contract to be signed in Victoria today. CGF President Dame Louise Martin said: “The Commonwealth Games Federation is absolutely delighted to award the 2026 Commonwealth Games to Victoria. Commonwealth Games Australia and the Victorian Government have set out a bold and innovative vision for hosting our major multi-sport event. “In Victoria, we believe we have found the perfect partner for the next stage of our journey. WSF President Zena Wooldridge said: “This a very special moment for the Commonwealth Sport family and on behalf of the entire Movement, I would like to congratulate Commonwealth Games Australia and Victoria on their successful Games submission. “We now look forward to a bright future as we work together to stage a Commonwealth Games like no other.” The 2026 Games will be the 23rd edition of the major multi-sport competition, which first began in Hamilton, Canada in 1930. Victoria is a world leading major events and tourism destination. The State has a strong track record for staging high profile sporting competition including The Australian Open tennis grand slam, the Melbourne Formula 1 Grand Prix and the Melbourne Cup. Victoria also regularly hosts elite cricket, golf and Australian Rules Football competition.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is launching a new four-sport Olympic qualifier series for Paris 2024. This is an Olympic Agenda 2020+5 project, which was presented to the IOC Executive Board. The new IOC-led Olympic qualifier series will include four sports – BMX freestyle, breaking, skateboarding, and sport climbing. The series of three festival-style events will bring together the best athletes from each of the four sports in one urban park, as they compete to qualify for the Olympic Games Paris 2024. Hosted in compact city centre venues over four days, between March and June 2024, the festivals will offer a new Olympic experience to fans from around the world, blending sport with music, art and culture. The qualifier series builds on recommendation 6 of Olympic Agenda 2020+5 “Enhance and promote the road to the Olympic Games.” The IOC will work closely with the four partner International Federations – the International Federation of Sport Climbing, the Union Cycliste Internationale, the World DanceSport Federation and World Skate, which will remain responsible for the running of their respective competitions – to use the power of the Olympic brand in order to enhance the exposure of the athletes and their journeys on the road to Paris 2024. These three events will form part of the respective Paris 2024 qualification systems for each sport. IOC President Thomas Bach said: “A key recommendation of Olympic Agenda 2020+5 was to enhance and promote the road to the Olympic Games for the athletes. This series of qualification events is a key milestone in the delivery of that recommendation. By having the best athletes from these four sports in a series of qualification events in major city locations, which will combine sport and culture in a festival atmosphere, we expect to boost their visibility and highlight the great achievements of the competing athletes on the road to Paris 2024. I would like to congratulate the four participating International Federations for their vision in working with us to create a new exciting pathway to the Olympic Games for athletes and fans around the world.”

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-The Executive Board (EB) of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) discussed again the dilemma the Olympic Movement is currently facing after the breach of the Olympic Truce by the Russian government and the government of Belarus through its support in this. The Olympic Movement is united in its mission to contribute to peace through sport and to unite the world in peaceful competition beyond all political disputes. The Olympic Games, the Paralympic Games, World Championships and World Cups and many other sports events unite athletes of countries which are in confrontation and sometimes even war. At the same time, the Olympic Movement is united in its sense of fairness not to punish athletes for the decisions of their government if they are not actively participating in them. We are committed to fair competitions for everybody without any discrimination. The current war in Ukraine, however, puts the Olympic Movement in a dilemma. While athletes from Russia and Belarus would be able to continue to participate in sports events, many athletes from Ukraine are prevented from doing so because of the attack on their country. This is a dilemma which cannot be solved. The IOC EB has therefore today carefully considered the situation and, with a heavy heart, issued the following resolution: In order to protect the integrity of global sports competitions and for the safety of all the participants, the IOC EB recommends that International Sports Federations and sports event organisers not invite or allow the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials in international competitions. Wherever this is not possible on short notice for organisational or legal reasons, the IOC EB strongly urges International Sports Federations and organisers of sports events worldwide to do everything in their power to ensure that no athlete or sports official from Russia or Belarus be allowed to take part under the name of Russia or Belarus. Russian or Belarusian nationals, be it as individuals or teams, should be ccepted only as neutral athletes or neutral teams. No national symbols, colours, flags or anthems should be displayed. Wherever, in very extreme circumstances, even this is not possible on short notice for organisational or legal reasons, the IOC EB leaves it to the relevant organisation to find its own way to effectively address the dilemma described above. The IOC EB welcomes and appreciates the many calls for peace by athletes, sports officials and members of the worldwide Olympic Community. The IOC admires and supports in particular the calls for peace by Russian athletes.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-The Executive Board (EB) of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) reiterated the IOC’s strong condemnation of the breach of the Olympic Truce by the Russian government and the government of Belarus through its support in this. The respective UN resolution was adopted by the UN General Assembly on 2 December 2021 by consensus of all 193 UN Member States. The Olympic Truce began seven days before the start of the Olympic Games, on 4 February 2022, and ends seven days after the closing of the Paralympic Games. The IOC EB urges all International Sports Federations to relocate or cancel their sports events currently planned in Russia or Belarus. They should take the breach of the Olympic Truce by the Russian and Belarussian governments into account and give the safety and security of the athletes absolute priority. The IOC itself has no events planned in Russia or Belarus. In addition, the IOC EB urges that no Russian or Belarussian national flag be displayed and no Russian or Belarussian anthem be played in international sports events which are not already part of the respective World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) sanctions for Russia. At the same time, the IOC EB expresses its full support to the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) for the upcoming Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. The IOC EB expresses its deep concerns about the safety of the members of the Olympic Community in Ukraine and stands in full solidarity. It notes that the special IOC task force is in contact with the Olympic Community in the country to coordinate humanitarian assistance where possible. The IOC EB asks the task force to continue to closely monitor the situation and to keep the IOC EB informed and updated, also with regard to potential amendments of today’s resolution.

Sports Bulletin Report BEIJING:-The 139th Session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) resumed its proceedings in Beijing today with several rounds of elections. Olympic bronze medallist Danka Barteková (Slovakia), having been an IOC Member as an elected athletes’ representative from 2012 until 2021, and having been Vice-Chair of the IOC Athletes’ Commission from 2018 to 2021, was also elected. Both Mr Biel und Ms Barteková were elected as Independent Individuals. David Lappartient (France) was elected as an IOC Member linked to his function as President of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). Olympians Martin Fourcade (France) and Frida Hansdotter (Sweden), elected by their peers earlier this week as members of the IOC Athletes’ Commission (AC), were also elected by the Session as IOC Members, bringing the number of active athletes’ representatives in the IOC membership to 15. The term of office of all the newly elected IOC Members is eight years. A new Vice-President and two members re-elected to the IOC Executive Board (EB) During today’s proceedings, the Session elected Juan Antonio Samaranch (Spain) as an IOC Vice-President. Mr Samaranch’s term as Vice-President will start on 20 May after the conclusion of the 139th IOC Session. Nenad Lalovi? (Serbia) and Ivo Ferriani (Italy) were also re-elected as EB members. The terms for the EB members is four years. Member re-election, term extension and change of membership status Arriving at the end of her IOC membership term, Nicole Hoevertsz (Aruba) was re-elected for an additional eight years. A change of status to Independent Individual was also approved for Ms Hoevertsz. IOC Member Poul-Erik Høyer (Denmark) informed the Session that, for personal reasons, he was not seeking re-election. Therefore his membership will end at the close of the 139th Session in May. The age limit of 70 for IOC Member Luis Moreno (Colombia) was extended for four years. As the Chair of the IOC Public Affairs and Social Development Through Sport Commission and Permanent Observer of the IOC to the United Nations since 2019, Mr Moreno plays an important role in the relationship between the IOC and the UN. Today’s elections bring the number of IOC Members to 106. Re-election of two members of the IOC Ethics Commission Following the IOC EB’s recommendation, the Session also re-elected two members of the IOC Ethics Commission for a new four-year term, in their capacity as IOC Members: Pierre-Olivier Beckers-Vieujant Auvita Rapilla. Chaired by former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon since 2017, the IOC Ethics Commission is composed of nine members, five of whom must be independent from the IOC. Among the four IOC Members, one must be an IOC Athletes’ Commission member.

Sports Bulletin Report BEIJING:-The athletes at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 have elected Martin Fourcade (FRA) and  Frida Hansdotter (SWE) to the International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s Athletes’ Commission (AC), for a term ending at the Olympic Winter Games 2030. The newly elected members will join the Commission to represent the athlete voice within the Olympic Movement. ?Between 27 January and 16 February, 2,307 athletes voted in the IOC AC election at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, representing a participation rate of 80.50 per cent. Athletes had the opportunity to vote at the Athlete365 Spaces in the three Olympic Villages in Beijing, Yanqing and Zhangjiakou. In total, 16 candidates, representing 16 National Olympic Committees (NOCs), all five continents and six winter sports, stood for election. This was a record for the Olympic Winter Games. The newly elected members will join the IOC AC at the end of Beijing 2022 for a term of eight years, and will be proposed for election as IOC Members at the IOC Session in Beijing on 19 February. IOC AC Chair Emma Terho remarked: “We had a record number of candidates from a diverse range of countries and sports, and I want to thank all the candidates for showing their interest in representing the athletes of the world. We were also delighted to see the high turnout of athletes participating and sharing their voice in the IOC Athletes’ Commission election. “Congratulations and welcome to the two new members who are joining the IOC Athletes’ Commission at an exciting time, just six months after the election of four members in Tokyo. We have an extremely motived Commission full of energy and enthusiasm. I am excited about the collective opportunity we have to represent athletes’ interests and build on the great work done by the Commission over the years.” The new members Martin Fourcade, Biathlon, France Frida Hansdotter, Skiing, Sweden Outgoing members IOC AC member Hayley Wickenheiser (CAN), who was elected by her peers during the Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014, has completed her term on the Commission, and a seat had also been left vacant following the resignation of Ole Einar Bjørndalen (NOR) in 2016. The IOC AC members will elect their Chair and Vice-Chairs on 18 February 2022, with the Chair holding a position as a full member of the IOC Executive Board, representing athletes at the highest level within the IOC.

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-The President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach and World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus met during the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 to discuss ways to further strengthen collaboration between their two organisations. The meeting took place after the WHO Director-General ran with the Olympic torch on the day of the Opening Ceremony, and said: “The Olympics are about, hope, solidarity, unity and peace. Especially hope to end this pandemic. I hope we will achieve the 70 per cent vaccination in each and every country around the world by mid this year, and hope the acute phase of the pandemic will be over, so that people will come together like always.” During the meeting, the IOC President reaffirmed the IOC’s support for this desire of WHO: “We have been given a way forward with a safe and effective vaccine that can help save precious lives,” Bach said. “Let us all join hands in giving free and equal access to the vaccine for everybody across the world to pledge our collective responsibility to protect those who are the most vulnerable, because everyone on this planet has a right to live a healthy life. We are stronger together when we stand in solidarity and care for each other.” The IOC and WHO formalised their collaboration to promote public health with a Memorandum of Understanding in 1984. The partnership has grown since then, resulting in a series of projects promoting grassroots sport and healthy lifestyles for all, and leveraging WHO expertise in health emergencies, mass gatherings and water quality in the context of the Olympic Games. The two organisations signed a new Cooperative Agreement in 2020 to strengthen and expand on these dimensions. On Olympic Day in June 2020, the IOC, WHO and the United Nations (UN) joined forces against the pandemic with the help of athletes. The “Healthy Together” partnership co-signed by the UN was built on the need for collective action to reduce the spread and COVID-19. The IOC helped to further bring that commitment to life last month by releasing a video that uses the persuasive power of athletes to encourage vaccination. More than 20 Olympians and Paralympians called on world leaders and decision-makers to ensure free and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, and widely shared the video on social media. WHO experts were also involved in developing the COVID-19 countermeasures that were successfully applied last summer at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, an event that became a template for other large-scale events. The global health agency worked with the IOC again during the preparations for Beijing 2022 in the challenging context of the more transmissible Omicron variant. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown how crucial sport and physical activity are for physical and mental health. The IOC has been regularly calling on the world’s governments to include sport in their post-crisis support programmes, because of the important role of sport in the prevention and recovery phases. The IOC President and the WHO Director-General also discussed a range of other mutual projects and closer collaboration on sport for health for future Games, starting in Paris 2024, to address emerging issues such as the prevalence of non-communicable diseases, which are often closely linked to unhealthy lifestyles and a lack of physical activity. WHO estimates that non-communicable diseases kill 41 million people annually and account for 71 per cent of all deaths around the world.