Bangkok, Thailand, March 18, 2023: Elections for the Athletes’ Committee of the Olympic Council of Asia will be held for the first time later this year.
OCA Director General Husain Al Musallam disclosed this on the opening day of the OCA/OS Athletes Forum in Bangkok on Saturday, March 18, describing it as a move that would make the Asian Olympic Movement stronger.
“We will have elections for the Athletes’ Committee. It will be in two steps. First the members will be elected, and subsequently, the Chair of the Athletes’ Committee will also be elected,” Mr. Al Musallam told delegates at the opening session of the two-day forum.
The election of the board of members, will take place during the Asian Games in Hangzhou in China in September, 2023, while that of the Chair of the Athletes’ Committee will take place in July, 2024.
At present the 14-strong board of Members, representing the five Zones of the OCA, is selected by the Executive Board from candidates who have been nominated by their respective NOCs. The Chair, nominated by his or her NOC, is elected by the General Assembly.
The Chair and Members will hold office for a term of four years. The Chair will also be a Member of the OCA Executive Board.
The 88 delegates from 43 National Olympic Committees also heard the encouraging news that funds were freely available for the use by individual athletes’ committees to support the progress, education and career development of athletes.
Ikram Tayyab, OCA Athletes’ Committee Vice-Chair revealed: “We are not short of resources. Now it is all about how we implement and make use of these resources.”
Also addressing the opening session was Dato Seri Chaiyapak Siriwat, NOC Thailand Vice President and OCA Vice President for the 6th Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games, Emma Terho, IOC Athletes’ Commission, and Olivier Niamkey, Olympic Solidarity, Associate Director.