- Title: IOC Presidential candidates confident ahead of Thursday's election
- Date: 19th March 2025
- Summary: IOC MEMBERS WALKING THROUGH MIXED ZONE (SOUNDBITE) (English) IOC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE PRINCE FEISAL AL HUSSEIN SAYING: "The greatest takeaway from this has been the engagement with the members. I mean, it's really been fascinating for me. You know, I've probably spoken to more members in the last three to four months than I had in the previous four years. And that's beca
- Embargoed:
- Keywords: Greece IOC IOC Session International Olympic Committee Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr Prince Feisal Al Hussein Thomas Bach
- Location: PYLOS, GREECE
- City: PYLOS, GREECE
- Country: Greece
- Topics: Europe,Olympics,Sport
- Reuters ID: LVA003000819032025RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The slow-burn race for the most powerful job in world sport roared into life on Wednesday (March 19), set against the dazzling backdrop of the Ionian Sea, where the seven contenders for the International Olympic Committee presidency made their final moves ahead of a vote that will shape the sporting landscape for the next decade. Behind the gilded facades and five-star hospitality of the Costa Navarino resort in Greece's southwestern Peloponnese, whispers of alliances and voting tactics swirled as IOC members met for the 144th Session – the last with Thomas Bach at the wheel. The winner of the presidential election will lead the world's wealthiest multi-sports organisation with revenues of about $7 billion per four-year cycle. With the Mediterranean breeze carrying hints of salt and ambition, the seven seeking to replace Bach had to navigate a gauntlet of flashing cameras and microphones as they were ushered to lunch on a terrace overlooking the sea. "I'm still here," quipped Britain's Sebastian Coe, considered one of the frontrunners, as he walked briskly past the bank of reporters, flashing a smile but making no further comment. Kirsty Coventry, considered another frontrunner and believed to be Bach's preferred candidate, was similarly circumspect, stopping only to make one brief comment to German media before the Zimbabwean headed to the terrace. Last to leave the Session Hall was Spain's Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr, son of the IOC's seventh president who led the body from 1980 to 2001. French candidate David Lappartient, head of the world cycling federation, insisted the race was wide open, and that he expects multiple rounds of voting before a decisive winner emerges. With just over 100 ballots set to be cast at the Greek seaside resort the winner will need an outright majority. If nobody secures a majority, the lowest scorer is axed, triggering another round of voting until one candidate emerges victorious. Other candidates Johan Eliasch and Morinari Watanabe would not speculate. The final candidate, Prince Feisal Al Hussein of Jordan, said: "I have spoken to more members in the last 3-4 months than in the last 4 years, and that for me has been the great takeaway of this – engagement. "This is a global community and we should use that for our advantage."
(Production: Stamos Prousalis, Iain Axon) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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