On the occasion of the recent X World Sports Games in Wroclaw, the Polish Olympic Committee was proud to welcome IOC President Thomas Bach who also visited its Olympic Centre in Warsaw.

The IOC president was welcomed by POC President Andrzej Kraśnicki, Vice-President and IOC member Irena Szewińska, and Secretary General Adam Krzesiński.

The visit started with a meeting with the President of the Republic of Poland Mr Andrzej Duda at the Presidential Palace, at which the two leaders discussed the Olympic Movement of Poland, cooperation on different levels, and Poland’s Krakow 2022 bidding experience.

At the meeting Duda assured Bach that if any Polish city decides to renew its bedding to host the Olympic Games, the Polish authorities will give all the necessary support to the initiative. The President of the IOC for his part assured that the IOC will give all necessary assistance and information from their side.

Bach then went on to the Olympic Centre, which hosts the Museum of Sport and Tourism, where Bach met with the POC Executive Board and chairs of POC commissions, as well as many Olympic medallists, former athletes and Olympians. In his address, the IOC President spoke about the Olympic Movement, and progress in the implementation of Agenda 2020, as well as the upcoming Olympic Games Host City election.

The participants at the meeting shared opinions and comments in a friendly and engaged atmosphere. At the end of the meeting the IOC President was given a small statue of the Polish zubr (bison) – the symbol of strength – and a set of Olympic coins issued by the National Bank of Poland for successive Olympic Games, from 2004 to 2016.

Dr Thomas Bach gave POC President Andrzej Kraśnicki a diploma confirming the IOC’s recognition of the Polish Olympic Committee in 1919, and a statue of Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the Olympic Movement. The meeting with the Polish Olympic Committee was followed by a press conference, and an exclusive interview to with Polish Television SA.

The IOC President’s visit to Warsaw ended with a visit to the Chopin Museum, and piano recital in his honour performed by Waldemar Malicki and Maestro Jerzy Maksymiuk.