25 September 2024 – At the Summit of the Future and the high-level debate of the 79th General Assembly of the United Nations (UN) in New York, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) President, Thomas Bach, met more than 30 heads of state and government and the UN Secretary-General.

In all these meetings he received congratulations and praise for the success of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and their resounding message of peace and solidarity. During his time in New York, he was accompanied by IOC Member Luis Alberto Moreno, who is the IOC’s Permanent Observer to the UN.

In these meetings, the IOC President thanked the leaders personally for their support for the inclusion of sport as an important enabler for the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Pact for the Future. The landmark document was adopted by the 193 UN Member States on Sunday.

Following his speech at the Summit for the Future, in which the IOC President highlighted the role of sport as an important enabler for the UN SDGs, he further emphasised this role and the success of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 in his bilateral meetings.

In a meeting with UN Secretary-General António Guterres, the IOC President congratulated the UN and him personally on the adoption of the Pact for the Future and thanked him for his support for the peace mission of the Olympic Games and the IOC.

With the President of the UN Security Council and Prime Minister of Slovenia, Robert Golob, the IOC President discussed the contribution of sport to peace. Slovenia currently holds the rotating presidency of the UN Security Council. Prime Minister Golob expressed his full appreciation for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and their contribution to peace through the participation of athletes from the territories of 206 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team, including Individual Neutral Athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport.

This contribution of sport to peace is fully in line with the objectives of the signature event the Security Council will hold this Wednesday and Thursday in New York, to which the Prime Minister of Slovenia invited the IOC President to deliver a speech. A high-level open debate of the Security Council on “Leadership for peace” will be convened as part of the “Maintenance of international peace and security” agenda item.

Upon meeting Brazil’s President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, the IOC President thanked him for his commitment to the legacy of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Rio 2016. The federal government is working closely with the city of Rio to maintain the legacy of the Games.

The IOC President also met with South Africa’s President, Cyril Ramaphosa. The two leaders discussed the importance of the non-politicisation of sport and its unifying mission.

The IOC President addressed the upcoming Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 with the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni.

With the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, President Bach discussed India’s interest in hosting the Olympic Games in 2036.

Chile’s interest in hosting a future edition of the Olympic Games was discussed in a meeting between the IOC President and the President of Chile, Gabriel Boric.

With the President of Senegal, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, the IOC President spoke about the preparations for the upcoming Youth Olympic Games Dakar 2026 and the follow-up to the Sport for Sustainable Development Summit, held on the eve of the Olympic Games Paris 2024.

The IOC President also met with Prof. Muhammad Yunus, the Interim Prime Minister of Bangladesh, and attended an event celebrating the 50^th anniversary of Bangladesh’s membership of the UN. Noble Peace Prize laureate Prof. Yunus is strongly connected to the Olympic Movement. He received the Olympic Laurel during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

Wang Yi, Special Representative of the Chinese President, Xi Jinping, and Chinese Foreign Minister, and the IOC President spoke in their meeting about China’s success at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and the strong and longstanding cooperation between the IOC and China.

President Bach discussed the implementation of the joint IOC-UN-Habitat memorandum of understanding with the organisation’s new Executive Director, Anacláudia Rossbach. Initial joint projects in Ghana and Australia (Brisbane) have already been announced, and additional projects in four cities are being prepared and will be announced shortly.

While in New York, the IOC President received the Prince Albert II Leadership in Post-Conflict Development Award from the Foundation for Post-Conflict Development (FPCD), under the patronage of IOC Member HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco. The prize recognises excellence in diplomacy, particularly efforts that contribute to peace and post-conflict development.

The IOC President also agreed on a memorandum of understanding with the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation. The partnership will focus on using the power of sport to promote young leaders in the field of environmental protection. It builds on the IOC’s existing Young Leaders Programme, which empowers young talents to leverage the power of sport to make a positive difference in their communities.

At the 2024 Concordia Annual Summit, at a fireside chat hosted by IOC Member Laura Chinchilla, President Bach discussed the peace mission of the IOC, sport as an important enabler for the UN SDGs, the success of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 and the Olympic Esports Games. Concordia is a global convener of heads of state, government officials, C-suite executives, and leaders of non-profits, think tanks and foundations, which aims to find cross-sector solutions that address the biggest challenges of our time.

The IOC President also hosted a dinner, to which IOC Members present in New York were invited. Gerardo Werthein, Kirsty Coventry, Prince Albert II of Monaco, Luis Alberto Moreno, Laura Chinchilla, Princess Reema Bandar Al-Saud and Johan Eliasch attended.