David GOMBE
Thomas Bach has been re-elected as the International Olympic Committee President at the 137th IOC session held on Wednesday.
Bach received 93 votes and 1 voted against him from the 94 valid votes to land himself another four year term.
The 67 year old German was first elected as IOC President at the IOC held in Buenos Aires in 2013. This term will finish on 8th August this year which is the closing day of the 2020 Olympic Games to take place in Tokyo.
His new and last term will immediately begin after and will conclude in 2025.
Bach thanked the votes for the overwhelming support and promised to be a President for all
“Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart for this overwhelming vote of confidence and trust. For me, this is even more overwhelming considering the many reforms and the many difficult decisions we had to take, which affected all of us,” said President Bach after the election.
“You know that this touches me deeply. It also makes me humble. When you elected me for the first time as your President in 2013 in Buenos Aires, I said that I wanted to lead the IOC according to my campaign motto ‘Unity in diversity’ and be a President for all of you and for all our stakeholders.”
“This commitment is also true for my second and last term. My door, my ears and my heart remain open for each and every one of you. I hope that I can count on your continued dedication, support and friendship also during these four more years.”
Thomas Bach was a world-class fencer, winning the Olympic gold medal, but also two gold medals with the German foil fencing team at the World Championships in Montreal in 1976 and in Buenos Aires in 1977. He was a founding member of the IOC Athletes’ Commission in 1981, on which he remained until 1988. In 1991, he became an IOC Member and sat on the IOC Executive Board between 1996 and 2013. He served as IOC Vice-President from 2000 to 2004, 2006 to 2010 and from 2010 until his election as IOC President in September 2013.
