Lausanne, Switzerland, March 10, 2021: Thomas Bach has been re-elected for an additional four-year term as President of the International Olympic Committee.
At the 137th IOC Session held virtually on Wednesday, March 10, the 67-year-old German received 93 yes and 1 no votes from the 94 valid votes.
Bach was first elected IOC President in 2013 for an initial eight-year term. This second term will conclude in 2025.
“Thank you very much from the bottom of my heart for this overwhelming vote of confidence and trust,” said Bach, who became an IOC Member in 1991.
“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.
“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.”
President Bach has asked the Olympic movement to consider changing the Olympic motto from “Faster, higher, stronger” by adding the word “together”, after a hyphen, to make “Faster, higher, stronger – together” reflecting the post-coronavirus world.
His first term was dominated by the Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms, succeeded now by Olympic Agenda 2020+5, and leading the Olympic sports movement through the coronavirus pandemic.
Source: www.olympic.org