During the general meeting of the Association of International Summer Olympic Sports Federations (ASOIF), the president of the Olympic body stated: “ASOIF’s growth reflects the evolution towards an ever-increasing professionalization of sport and the organization of sporting events.

Before continuing: “In today’s complex environment, the IFs are essential to find innovative solutions in order to continuously work towards the modernization of the sport and thus contribute to the success of the Olympic Games. The importance of the role of the IFs in planning The Olympic Games are formally recognized and highlighted in the 2020 Olympic Agenda and the 2020+5 Olympic Agenda.”

During his speech, the President also praised ASOIF’s contribution to strengthening the unity of the Olympic Movement: “Together we are always stronger. The collective strength of all the IFs makes us all stronger within the Olympic Movement”, he told the assembly. In particular, I would like to thank the ASOIF Board of Directors for their very clear statement, emphasizing the need to separate sport and politics, ”he said -he adds.

In this regard, the IOC President also welcomed the recent statement by the leaders of France, Italy, the United States, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and Japan during the G7 summit held in Hiroshima, who recalled that “although respecting the autonomy of sports organizations, we insist on the fairness of sports competitions and the need for Russian and Belarusian athletes not to appear in any way as representatives of their states”. President Thomas Bach recalled that this is fully in line with the IOC position regarding the participation of individual, neutral athletes with the benefit of a Russian or Belarusian passport.

The IOC president ended his speech by discussing the future and success of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, which he said will be “a true celebration of sport and humanity.”

The full speech can be seen here.