Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean: perfection on ice

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28/01/2015

At the 1984 Olympic Winter Games in Sarajevo, British ice dancers Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean turned in a flawless performance that earned them perfect marks for artistic impression and a stunning gold medal. Together, they look back on that unforgettable night in our exclusive video.  

Competing at the Olympic Winter Games in Sarajevo in 1984, Great Britain’s Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean produced a sparkling display in their free programme, watched by 8,500 fortunate spectators at the Zetra Olympic Ice Hall and a TV audience that included 24 million spellbound viewers back home in the UK. Performing to Maurice Ravel’s Bolero, the two ice dancers from the city of Nottingham did not put a foot wrong.
At the end of their remarkable routine the duo were showered with flowers by the rapt audience. Turning to look at the screen, the pair saw a row of perfect 6s, a record score that will never be repeated following the changes made to the judging system in the 2000s.

Achieving excellence was nothing new for Torvill and Dean, who left an indelible mark on figure skating during their amateur career. World and European champions four times in a row between 1981 and 1984, they turned professional following their Sarajevo triumph and took part in a number of world tours.
After ten years of shows on ice, the legendary duo made a dramatic return to the Winter Games at Lillehammer 1994, where they came away with a bronze behind the Russian pairs Maya Usova and Alexander Zhulin, and Oksana Grishuk and Evgeni Platov, who won silver and gold respectively. 
In our exclusive video Torvill and Dean reflect on their momentous victory in Sarajevo. Explaining what goes through the mind of champions when victory is at stake in a three-minute routine on ice, they speak of the intense concentration they needed, explaining how they entered “the zone” during the competition.

Watch their free programme !

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Statement from IOC President Thomas Bach

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It is with the deepest sadness that I learned of the death of the former German President, Richard von Weizsäcker. Our thoughts are with his wife and his family.

The world loses a great Statesman, the Olympic Movement loses an extraordinary supporter and for myself I am losing a constant, reliable and loyal counselor.

Richard von Weizsäcker always supported and lived the Olympic ideal with its humanitarian values of understanding and tolerance. To him sport was a personal experience of life as well as tool to build bridges across all borders and differences.

During all the important moments of my life he always gave me valuable and sensitive advice and support.

I owe him a permanent debt of gratitude and I pay my deepest respects to his memory, to an extraordinary character, who always combined in a very special manner intellect and integrity with a deeply caring personality.

The worldwide Olympic Movement honoured Richard von Weizsäcker with the Olympic Order in gold. We will miss him profoundly. He will always remain in our thoughts.

To honour Richard von Weizsäcker, the Olympic flag will be flown at half mast for three days.
Thomas Bach, IOC President

Bernhard Russi relives his triumphant run in Sapporo

KALYAN KUMAR MAHATA The true appellation of Apu. A Creative Commons license.

30/01/2015

On the slopes of Mount Eniwa on 7 February 1972, Bernhard Russi won the downhill skiing gold at the Olympic Winter Games. This success represented the pinnacle of the career of a man who subsequently went on to design every Olympic downhill course since 1988. As part of our Words of Olympians series, the Swiss Alpine skiing legend takes us back 42 years to relive the one minute and 51 seconds of his triumphant run in Sapporo.

On 15 February 1970, a 22-year-old Swiss skier from the canton of Uri, who was competing in his first major international event, unexpectedly prevailed on the Saslong piste in Val Gardena (ITA) to become world champion. That surprise victory heralded the beginning of Bernhard Russi’s decade of dominance, during which he would only ever share the spotlight with other legendary stars of the sport such as Franz Klammer (AUT).
Two years later in Japan, he added the Olympic title to his CV. In the video below, he explains that the sight of a red camera light at the end of his run – and the thoughts it subsequently generated – caused him to momentarily lose his focus, but fortunately the distraction had no significant impact on the final result.
At the 1976 Olympic Games in Innsbruck (AUT), Russi put in another splendid performance, but was pipped to the post by home favourite Klammer, who claimed gold by just 0.33 seconds.
Over the course of his marvellous career, Russi collected 10 wins and 28 top-three finishes in the FIS Alpine Ski World Cup. After stepping onto the podium one final time in Cortina d’Ampezzo (ITA) in December 1977, he decided to hang up his skis at the age of 29. His passion for the sport would never leave him, however.
In the 1980s, the retired medallist took on the role of downhill course designer on behalf of the FIS. On occasion, completely undeveloped sites would be chosen, involving exploratory helicopter flights over mountains and expeditions on skis with topographical measurements in hand. Great care went into selecting the right slope on which future champions would be made, such as the Olympiabakken course in Kvitfjell, used first at Lillehammer 1994 and then as the annual venue for World Cup races, or the Rosa Khutor course used for the Sochi Games in 2014.
In addition, Russi, who says “skiing is my life”, introduced inspired improvements to many existing courses, such as the Face de Bellevarde in Val d’Isère (FRA), the spectacular stage for downhill events at Albertville 1992, the ‘Grizzly Downhill’ at the Snowbasin resort (Salt Lake City 2002) and the Banchetta run in Sestriere (Turin 2006).

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IOC President in United States - meets President Clinton

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©IOC/Ian Jones

31/01/2015

International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach began a week-long trip to the United States with a meeting with the Founder of the Clinton Foundation and 42nd President of the United States, President Bill Clinton. 

The pair discussed the important role that sports can play in society, peace building and development; as well as the possibility of future cooperation between their two organisations.
President Bach, who will attend the Super Bowl on Sunday, was due to meet NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell ahead of the game.

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Olympic Torch Relay to visit every state in Brazil

KALYAN KUMAR MAHATA The true appellation of Apu. A Creative Commons license.

©Getty Images

29/01/2015

The Olympic flame will travel across 26 states and through 250 cities and towns on a 20,000km journey around Brazil in the lead-up to the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.

As the Organising Committee announced the first details for the Rio 2016 Olympic Torch Relay on 29 January, it was revealed that the flame would be carried by at least 10,000 torchbearers to every corner of Brazil, on a route designed to reach approximately 90 per cent of the population.
As is traditional, the lighting ceremony of the Olympic flame at the home of the ancient Olympic Games, Olympia, will mark the start of the Olympic Torch Relay. From Greece, the flame will arrive in Brazil approximately 100 days before the start of the 2016 Games and will then begin its journey around the country. The culmination of the journey will come on 5 August at the Maracanã Stadium in Rio when the flame will light the Olympic cauldron at the Rio 2016 Opening Ceremony.

Carlos Nuzman, President of the Rio 2016 Organising Committee, said the Torch Relay would give the opportunity for millions of Brazilians to be involved in the build-up to the Olympic Games. “Upon being awarded the right to host the 2016 Olympic Games, we promised to involve the entire country, thereby ensuring it would be an event made by Brazilians, for Brazilians and with a Brazilian spirit for the world to enjoy. To stage the Olympic Torch Relay across the whole country is to fulfil that promise and give millions the chance to participate in an unforgettable celebration.”
Continuing its longstanding support of the Olympic Torch Relay, Coca-Cola, together with Nissan and Bradesco, will be a Presenting Partner in Brazil. Flavio Camelier, Vice President of Coca-Cola Brazil for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, said: “We are writing yet another chapter in the history of our partnership with the Olympic Torch Relay. Since the Barcelona Olympic Games, in 1992, we believe in its power to thrill, to provide unique moments and to spread the Olympic spirit throughout the whole world.”
The nomination process for the torchbearers will be held throughout 2015 and will be conducted in collaboration with the Presenting Partners, while the design of the torch and more details about the route will be announced later in the year.
Find out more about the Rio 2016 Olympic Torch Relay at www.rio2016.com

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“Getting the couch potatoes off the couch”: IOC joins forces with UNESCO to improve Physical Education in schools

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29/01/2015

The International Olympic Committee (IOC), in partnership with UNESCO and several other international organisations, has cooperated on new Guidelines, released today, urging governments and educational planners to invest in the quantity and quality of physical education that they offer. 

The action-orientated Quality Physical Education (QPE) Guidelines, which are in line with the IOC’s mission to include sport in school curricula worldwide and to promote Olympic values-based education, were presented today during a meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for Physical Education and Sport (CIGEPS) at the IOC headquarters in Lausanne.  
IOC President Thomas Bach said: “Physical Education in schools is crucial if we are to get the couch potatoes off the couch. Sport has a central role to play in the education system, not just to fight against obesity and sedentary behaviour, but studies have shown time and again the positive effects physical activity has on the social and intellectual development of young people. Collaborating closely with UNESCO, we will ensure physical education is an integral part of school curricula to promote a healthy mind in a healthy body.”  
Working in schools is the best way to reach young people and tackle inactivity. The Guidelines are a tool to help governments reverse the decline in investment in physical education in schools, which has been happening in many countries recently. They give a framework to help policy-makers reshape physical education policy as well as providing practical advice for implementing the Guidelines.  
In conjunction with the online publication of the QPE Guidelines, and recognising that physical education and sports-related programmes need to reflect local settings, a pilot phase will be launched to test and assist with the implementation of these Guidelines at the national level. The IOC will specifically provide support to five pilot countries, through their National Olympic Committees (NOCs), from March 2015 to April 2016.  
The IOC has long been at the forefront of using sport as a tool for education. Through its Olympic Values Education Programme (OVEP), the IOC has demonstrated that Olympic values-based education can inspire young people to adopt healthy, active lifestyles built on the values of friendship, excellence and respect. As outlined in Olympic Agenda 2020, the IOC’s strategic roadmap for the future of the Olympic Movement, the IOC will continue to strengthen its partnership with UNESCO to achieve its shared vision that sport is a fundamental human right and that physical education should be available to all individuals. 
For more information, please click here.

Seoul to host 2017 IOC World Conference on Prevention of Injury and Illness in Sport

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©Getty Images

26/01/2015

The 5th edition of this premier international conference in sports and exercise medicine will be held in Seoul, Republic of Korea, from 1 to 3 June 2017. It is the first time the IOC World Conference on Prevention of Injury and Illness in Sport will be held in Asia, and furthermore, in the host country of the next edition of the Olympic Winter Games in 2018.

Safeguarding the athletes’ health in sports training and competition is the number-one priority for the International Olympic Committee (IOC). This Conference, organised every three years, brings together eminent international specialists in injury and illness prevention to collaborate and share the latest findings and views on how best to protect the athletes’ wellbeing on and off the field of play. Using a multidisciplinary approach, the programme features keynote lectures, abstract presentations and workshops, and provides an exclusive opportunity for the world’s leading experts to meet face-to-face. Further details of the programme and registration process will be available closer to the date.

The IOC World Conference on Prevention of Injury and Illness in Sport in Seoul will be followed by a three-day Advanced Team Physician Course (5-7 June) in PyeongChang, the host city of the next Olympic Winter Games in 2018. It will be an incredible opportunity for some 150 team physicians to further improve their knowledge and practice of sports and exercise medicine with less than a year to go to the Games.

Athletes’ health at the heart of the IOCToday, there is growing emphasis placed on the area of injury and illness prevention by the IOC, as well as by National Olympic Committees (NOCs), International Federations (IFs) and national sporting bodies. With the creation of rehabilitation programmes, recovery camps and various preventative measures, the topic is central to sport and athletes’ wellbeing, making this Conference all the more crucial for the sporting world.

Over the last 10 years, there has also been a significant increase in research in this important field, with specialised groups being formed in several countries. Recently, the IOC recognised nine of the best of these research centres for their excellent and invaluable work. These IOC Research Centres for Prevention of Injury and Protection of Athlete Health will assist the IOC in researching, developing and implementing effective prevention and treatment for sports-related injuries and illnesses.
Registrations for the Conference will open at the end of 2015 at www.ioc-preventionconference.org.

Background informationHealth risks are inherent to the practice of sport, and protecting the athletes’ health is at the heart of the IOC’s concerns. Through its Medical Commission, the IOC has initiated, coordinated and supported research on a range of topics related to athletes’ health, with the ultimate goal of improving injury and illness prevention. The IOC also records and analyses athlete injuries and illnesses that occur in competition and training at the Olympic Games to gain further knowledge about the effectiveness and weaknesses of
existing programmes.

Learn more about the IOC Medical Commission

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