EOC Athletes Commission chair and Belgian table tennis champion Jean Michel Saive was in Rome last Friday with the members of his group for their annual meeting.

Together with attending members Mads Kruse Andersen (DEN – Rowing), Marion Rodewald (GER – Field Hockey, Mikko Ronkainen (FIN – Freestyle Skiing), and Alessandra Sensini (ITA – Windsurfing) he addressed issues of concern to the athletes of Europe in order to put together a strong agenda for the European Athletes’ Forum due in October.

Various candidatures to organise the event have been received and a final decision will soon be taken shortly. The October Forum will include an elective assembly that will see the baton pass to a new commission that will continue to foster the role of athletes in Europe and work to influence EU policy in favour of the Olympic Movement and athletes in particular.

Welcomed by the EOC Chief of Staff and her team, their stay also allowed them to enjoy a few hours in sunny Rome.