ADMINISTRATION
The IOC administration is at the service of the needs of the Olympic Movement. It prepares, implements and follows-up on a day-to-day basis the decisions taken by the main organisations of the Olympic Movement.
MISSIONS
What is the goal of the Olympic Movement?
According to the Olympic Charter, established by Pierre de Coubertin, the goal of the Olympic Movement is to contribute to building a peaceful and better world by educating youth through sport practised without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play.
Essential missions of the Olympic Movement:
CHOICE OF THE HOST CITY
ROLE OF THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE
After a detailed evaluation of the cities in question, the IOC Session awards a city the right to organise an edition of the Olympic Games or the Olympic Winter Games in its country. The IOC monitors the preparations for these Games through a Coordination Commission specially created to work with the Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (OCOG).
HOST CITY ELECTION PROCEDURE
The procedure leading to the election of a host city for the Olympic Games and the Olympic Winter Games is governed by the Olympic Charter (Rule 37 and its bye-law). Rule 37 was last amended at the 110th IOC Session in December 1999 when, among fundamental changes, a two-phase procedure was introduced.
Phase 1: Candidature Acceptance Procedure
The Candidature Acceptance Procedure is conducted under the authority of the IOC Executive Board.
Under Rule 37 of the Olympic Charter, any city wishing to organise the Olympic Games or the Olympic Winter Games must be put forward to the IOC by its National Olympic Committee (NOC).
No city is considered a "Candidate City" until it is accepted as such by the IOC Executive Board. During this entire phase, therefore, all cities are considered as "Applicant Cities". This phase lasts approximately 10 months.
Applicant Cities are required to answer a questionnaire which provides the IOC with an overview of each City's project to host the Olympic Games. Applications are then assessed by a working group comprised of external experts and IOC administration members to determine the Cities' potential to organise the Olympic Games. This assessment includes a number of technical criteria including government support, public opinion, general infrastructure, security, venues, accommodation and transport.
In concluding this Candidature Acceptance Procedure, the IOC Executive Board determines which cities are to be accepted as "Candidate Cities".
Phase 2: Candidature Phase
Those cities accepted as "Candidate Cities" by the IOC Executive Board go through to a second phase, during which they are required to submit a Candidature File to the IOC.
The Candidature Files are analysed by an Evaluation Commission, which also makes inspections of the Candidate Cities, before issuing a report, based on which the IOC Executive Board draws up the list of Candidate Cities to be submitted to the IOC Session for election.
The Evaluation Commission is composed of, inter alia, representatives of the IFs and National Olympic Committees, IOC members, representatives of the IOC Athletes' Commission and the International Paralympic Committee, as well as IOC experts.
HOST CITY ELECTION PROCEDURE FOR 2012
Nine National Olympic Committees (NOCs)/cities have submitted their application to host the Games of the XXX Olympiad in 2012. The cities, in alphabetical order, are: Havana (CUB), Istanbul (TUR), Leipzig (GER), London (GBR), Madrid (ESP), Moscow (RUS), New York (USA), Paris (FRA), and Rio de Janeiro (BRA).
Discover the key deadlines of the host city election procedure for the Olympic Games in 2012.
ORGANISATION OF THE OLYMPIC GAMES
REGULAR CELEBRATION OF THE OLYMPIC GAMES
The Olympic Games are competitions between athletes in individual or team events and not between countries. They bring together athletes designated by their respective National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and whose entries have been accepted by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). They compete under the technical direction of the International Sports Federations (IFs) concerned.
The Olympic Games consist of the Games of the Olympiad and the Olympic Winter Games. Both take place every four years. The term "Olympiad" designates the period of four successive years which begins with the Games of the Olympiad and ends with the opening of the Games of the following Olympiad. The Olympiads are numbered consecutively from the first Olympic Games of modern times, celebrated in Athens in 1896.
The first Olympic Winter Games were celebrated in 1924. Starting from that date, they are numbered in the order in which they are held. Since 1994, the year of the XVII Olympic Winter Games, the Olympic Winter Games have been held in the second calendar year following the year in which the Olympiad began. Those sports which are practised on snow and ice are considered as winter sports.
MANAGEMENT OF OLYMPIC GAMES RIGHTS
The Olympic Games are the exclusive property of the IOC which owns all rights relating thereto, in particular, and without limitation, the rights relating to their organisation, exploitation, broadcasting and reproduction by any means whatsoever. The final authority on any question concerning the Olympic Games lies with the IOC. All profits derived from the celebration of the Olympic Games must be applied to the development of the Olympic Movement and of sport.
PROMOTION OF EQUALITY IN SPORT
ACTION AGAINST APARTHEID
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) encourages equality in sport and has intervened several times to fight against apartheid :
- 15 May 1970: the IOC expels the South African Olympic Committee.
- 21 June 1988: conference against apartheid in sport held in Lausanne.
- 1988: "Apartheid and Olympism" Commission established.
- 9 July 1991: NOCSA fully recognised by the IOC.
- 22 May 1992: visit of Nelson Mandela to the IOC headquarters in Lausanne.
- 1992: a multi-racial South African delegation participates in the Games of the XXV Olympiad in Barcelona.
"The apartheid policy violates the fundamental principles of the Olympic Charter, which governs the entire Olympic Movement and it cannot be tolerated in any form whatsoever."
Juan Antonio Samaranch, 1988. President of the IOC from 1980 to 2001
PROMOTION OF WOMEN IN SPORT
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) strives to promote an increased participation of women in sports activities and in the Olympic Games, in cooperation with the National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and International Sports Federations (IFs). In this framework, it organises information seminars for women leaders, coaches, and technical personnel in the sports field. A world conference is also held every four years to evaluate progress made in the Olympic Movement, share experiences and identify priorities for the future.
A Women and Sport Working Group, composed of representatives of the Olympic Movement and specialists, has been established to advise the IOC Executive Board on measures to be taken to promote the advancement of women in sport.
The IOC is also concerned by women’s involvement in decision-making structures of sports organisations, in which they are still under-represented. It is in this framework that, in 1995, the IOC decided to set as an objective for NOCs and IFs that at least 10% of all decision-making positions be held by women by 31 December 2000, and that this percentage reach at least 20% by the end of 2005. In 2001, about 66% of NOCs and 43% of IFs had met this objective.
PROMOTION OF WOMEN IN SPORT
WOMEN IN THE OLYMPIC MOVEMENT
Women's participation within the Olympic Movement has been steadily growing since their first appearance at the Games in 1900, and this is particularly true of the last 30 years.
This development has taken place within a favourable economic, social and cultural framework, which has led to the adoption of international conventions and major legislation on the recognition and defence of women's rights.
WOMEN AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES
It was at the Games of the II Olympiad in Paris, in 1900, that women were allowed to compete for the first time in the Olympic Games. It is true that Baron de Coubertin firmly believed that the Games should traditionally remain a "eulogy for men's sport". Things evolved, however, enabling an increasing number of women to take part in the Games in the following years.
PROMOTION OF WOMEN SPORTS LEADERS
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is also keen to see more women involved in the decision-making structures of sports organisations. Indeed, while women's participation in the Olympic Games is growing fast, the number of women occupying leadership and administrative positions within the Olympic Movement is still limited.
SUPPORT ACTIVITIES
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has set up a series of activities and programmes to promote the advancement of women in sport, including seminars, conferences, scholarships, etc.
PROTECTION OF ATHLETES
ACTIVITIES OF THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE
The IOC devotes a great deal of attention to protecting the athletes, the heroes of the Olympic Games, and has undertaken the following actions:
- Creation of the IOC Athletes' Commission in 1981. This Commission delegates representatives to all the other IOC commissions; it is involved in the process to select the Olympic host city; and meets with the IOC Executive Board at least once a year to submit its recommendations.
- Studies performed by the IOC Medical Commission during the Olympic Games into traumatology and injury prevention. Research by the Medical Commission and the IFs on preventing injury and optimising performance through the analysis of movements.
- Creation in 1983 of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which became fully independent in 1993. This is an international court which handles the legal problems encountered by athletes. Its procedure is universally applicable, and is simple, quick, flexible and inexpensive.
- Creation of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in 1999 to combat the scourge of doping in sport and protect the health of the athletes. WADA is an independent body, but the IOC paid US$25 million towards setting it up, and covers 50% of its annual budget.
- Creation of the World Olympians Association (WOA) in 1995 to promote relations between Olympic athletes all over the world and spread the Olympic values.
- Respect for the environment by requiring cities bidding to host the Olympic Games to specify the environmental protection measures they intend to take.
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE
OBJECTIVE OF THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE
The IOC's involvement in assistance projects for human development is aimed at improving, through sport and physical activity, the quality of life and well-being of people who live in the most disadvantaged regions of the world. It is a matter of using sport as a means for positive change. Although these projects are specific and merely symbolic, the Olympic Movement's contribution is intended to complement the efforts of governments and inter- and non-governmental organisations to meet the challenges of our society. The IOC's commitment in this area is based on the need to place sport, which has become a real social force within society, at the service of human development.
PARTNERS
The IOC works with international technical partners to set up initiatives of awareness-raising and field projects for the promotion of physical education and heath through sport, particularly in refugee camps, communities affected by war or conflict, and in rural and particularly underprivileged areas.
IOC partners are:
- the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
- the World Health Organization (WHO)
- the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
- the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
- the United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention (UNODCCP)
- the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
- the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO)
- the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
- and the International Labour Organisation (ILO)
International Sports Federations and National Olympic Committees are also supporting these projects.
BENEFICIARIES
For those who benefit from these projects, mostly young children whose lives and education are precarious and who live in conditions of extreme poverty or urban violence, sport enables them to take part in a structured activity, promote friendship and exchanges between different communities, escape idleness and boredom, perform a health-promoting physical activity and sometimes stem the flow of population from the countryside to the cities. In other cases, these projects concern a larger population, of all ages.
THE ENVIRONMENT: THE THIRD DIMENSION OF OLYMPISM
THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE AND THE ENVIRONMENT
The International Olympic Committee (IOC), in its capacity as coordinator of the Olympic Movement, has resolutely committed itself to extending the range of its activities in the field of the environment and making the environment the third dimension of Olympism, after sport and culture.
It sees to it that the Olympic Games are held in conditions which demonstrate a responsible concern for environmental issues and works to promote a policy of consciousness-raising among the members of the Olympic Movement in order that all sports events may take environmental considerations into account in a responsible way. In this connection, it collaborates with organising committees, the competent public or private authorities and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). A Sport and Environment Commission was set up in 1996 to advise the IOC on environment-related policy.
EXAMPLES
Propane, the fuel used for the Nagano 1998 Olympic Torch, produces significantly less smoke or carbon monoxide compared to the paraffin used in past relays.
Nagano, 1998. Iron recycled from bridge piers was used in the construction of the Hakuba ski jumping venue.
A solar powered security vehicle patrols the streets of the Olympic Village in Sydney. Solar panels were also installed at a number of key venues.
Homebush Bay in Sydney is an entirely renovated zone, not only for sport but also for housing.
Sydney International Regatta Centre features a wide range of environmental initiatives, such as naturally controlled water quality and the introduction of underwater plants and fish to help maintain the ecosystem.
RESPECT FOR THE OLYMPIC TRUCE
HISTORY
The tradition of the Olympic Truce dates back to the 9th century BC, in Ancient Greece. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to revive this ancient concept in order to protect the interests of the athletes and sport in general.
TEN YEARS OF INITIATIVE FOR PEACE
In 1992, the first initiatives were launched by the IOC, in collaboration with the United Nations, allowing athletes of the former Republic of Yugoslavia to participate in the Barcelona Games. In 2000, during the Opening Ceremony of the Sydney Games, the South and North Korean delegations paraded in the stadium together under the flag of the Korean peninsula.
ROUND TABLES ON SPORT FOR A CULTURE OF PEACE
Six regional round tables have been organised by the IOC. One of the aims of these meetings was to exchange views on what actions the Olympic Movement should take nationally to promoting a culture of peace and the observance of the Olympic Truce.
INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC TRUCE FOUNDATION
In July 2000, the International Olympic Truce Foundation (IOTF) was created with a view to promoting peace through sport and the Olympic ideal
ALL THE GAMES SINCE 1896
Olympic Summer Games:
Olympic Winter Games:
