- HRH Prince Feisal AL HUSSEIN
- Lord Sebastian COE
- Mrs Kirsty COVENTRY
- Mr Johan ELIASCH
- Mr David LAPPARTIENT
- Mr Juan Antonio SAMARANCH
- Mr Morinari WATANABE
officially announced their candidacies by the deadline of midnight on 15 September 2024.
Between January 20 and 24, 2025 in Lausanne, the candidates will be invited by the IOC to present their candidatures, plans and views on the IOC presidency, in camera, to the full IOC membership.
AGE LIMIT Last week, the IOC Ethics Commission has stressed: “The IOC President must be a member of the IOC at the time of the election and during the entire duration of their term as IOC President.” The age limit for IOC membership is 70, with only one possibility of a four-year extension. And this could pose a barrier for the likes of World Athletics president Sebastian Coe, who is 67 years old. IOC vice president Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr, who turns 65 in November, is another potential candidate facing this hurdle. If elected, it is unlikely that Coe or Samaranch would complete the first term of eight years, under the current rules stated in the Olympic Charter.
“The Olympic Charter does not grant the IOC President any exception regarding the end of their membership because of either the age limit or the loss of the function for which the member was elected, namely as an active athlete, or as a president or holding an executive or senior leadership position within an NOC or IF,” the IOC Ethics Commission Chair Ban Ki-moon highlighted in a two-page letter dated September 9 and sent to all the IOC Members.
Coe became an IOC member in 2020 through his position as World Athletics president – he will complete the maximum 12 years in that role in 2027.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST Ban’s letter also touched on conflict of interest “between the mission of the IOC president to represent the IOC as the leader of the Olympic Movement and the mission of a president of an NOC (National Olympic Committee) or an IF (International Federation), which are individual constituents of the Olympic Movement”. The letter further stated that “this conflict could be resolved only if, after the election of the IOC President, the IOC Session held another vote for a change of membership status.”
ELECTION The new president will be elected by IOC members in March 2025 at a session in ancient Olympia, Greece and the term of office will begin on June 24, 2025, “allowing the newly elected IOC President to leave any previous office or position, and in order to facilitate a smooth transition between the current IOC President and the newly elected IOC President,” according to the IOC.
