International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Dr Thomas Bach paid tribute to the European Olympic Committees’ (EOC) continued endeavours within the Olympic Movement as he addressed the second day of the 52nd EOC General Assembly in Istanbul.

The Assembly was chaired by EOC President, Spyros Capralos, and opened by the Mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem İmamoğlu, who praised the leadership of President Bach and restated Istanbul’s desire to host the 2027 edition of the European Games.

President Bach, who attended the Gala Dinner on the previous evening, noted the busy and successful year that European sport has enjoyed and thanked the EOC for their commitment to look forward, specifically in the area of sustainability. He also praised the European athletes who have already qualified for the Olympic Games Paris 2024.

President Bach said: “It is great being together with all the European National Olympic Committees at the end of a busy year. After your European Games in Krakow-Malopolska and with your General Assembly here today, you have found the right time to look back at the events during the year, but at the same time to look forward.

“This is what we need to do. We cannot be complacent with what has been achieved during the year. We have to look to the future, and we have to identify the challenges ahead. There is of course one area which the Olympic Movement is very committed to and these are the sustainability development goals. I would like to thank EOC for signing up for United Nations Sports For Climate Action framework, which we at the IOC have initiated together with UN.”

Ahead of Paris 2024, President Bach added: “We see how our NOCs and the athletes are living the unifying mission of the Olympic Movement; a vision of peace and understanding.  There are a large number of European athletes who have already achieved a quota spot for Paris 2024 and all these athletes are on the path to the Olympic Games, which are striving to unite the entire world in peaceful competition.

“Our Olympic movement has a bright future, but we can only make this future bright if we are not only talking about the Olympic motto, but are living the Olympic motto. I invite you to live this new Olympic motto, to get faster in the fast-changing world, to aim higher, and to get stronger, but this we can only achieve if we are standing together in solidarity.”

President Bach emphasised that we must try to ensure that all athletes are able to participate, but only if they are meeting the strict conditions and criteria set out in the IOC’s recommendations and implemented by International Federations.

He said: “Our recommendations make it very clear that we are condemning the war in Ukraine and sanction those who are responsible for the war, and at the same time under these strict conditions we are giving the opportunity for the athletes to compete and to make their contribution to understanding and peace.”

Following his speech, President Bach presented Spanish National Olympic Committee (NOC) President Alejandro Blanco with the IOC Climate Action Award, given to the NOC for prioritising sustainable mobility within its strategy.

For his service to Polish sport and the Olympic Movement, former Polish NOC President and ex-officio member of the EOC Executive Committee (ExCo), Mr Andrzej Kraśnicki, was presented with the EOC Order of Merit Award by President Capralos.

The morning session was then dedicated to the European Games 2023, where Chair of the Coordination Commission for Krakow-Malopolska 2023 and EOC ExCo member Hasan Arat, CEO of the Organising Committee Marcin Nowak and Marshal of the Malopolska region Witold Kozlowski all gave their thoughts on the highly successful third European Games. Mr Arat focused particularly on the cooperation of all stakeholders, who worked together to deliver the event.

Mr Arat said: “Everyone played their part in ensuring the successful delivery of the Krakow-Malopolska 2023 and it is worth remembering that the Games were delivered despite a limited time to prepare following the Covid-19 pandemic.

“They were successful despite the modest resources available. Deloitte’s report into the Games shows that the 2023 edition were more cost-efficient than other similarly sized events, including both previous editions of the European Games. They showed us that anything is possible with enormous reserves of goodwill, stakeholders who are willing to go beyond their duties and a lot of hard work.

“The Games were remarkable not only for how much went right, but how little went wrong. While we were prepared for any crises that evolved, Poland must be proud that they ran an event with no significant issues. Of course, we also learned great lessons for future editions during our time in Poland and we must always strive for improvement”

Deloitte presented an independent assessment report on the event, before four separate panels were held to discuss the positive aspects, the challenges and how the EOC and future organising committees can incorporate these learnings into their organisation.

These panels included the experiences of athletes, NOCs and European Federations, as well as a panel specifically on communication, media and broadcast, which saw a number of EOC partners give their expert opinions.

After lunch, there were extensive presentations by both the Organising Committee for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and the Olympic Refuge Foundation, including a focus on the EOC Refugee Team, the first refugee team to take part in a continental Games.

The General Assembly culminated with EOC President Spyros Capralos thanking all the NOCs and European Federations for their attendance and participation, and confirming that the 53rd General Assembly will take place in Bucharest, Romania in June 2024 and the 54th in Frankfurt, Germany.