(ATR) Eight years late, former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan is decorated with the Olympic Order. Annan held the office from 1997 to 2006 and was awarded the order in 2007. His schedule did not permit an award ceremony at the time.
That ceremony came Thursday at IOC headquarters in Lausanne when IOC President Thomas Bach presented Annan with the prize.
"The Olympic spirit is something that has been with me for a long time," Annan is quoted in an IOC release.
"Sport is a great education. Some of the things I learnt that took me through life, through the Secretary-Generalship, I picked up in the sports field, where you learn to play in a team, where you learn to respect rules, where you learn not only to play in a team but to allow for individual brilliance."
Bach thanked Annan for his "many years of service to sport and for championing the unifying power of sport through the Kofi Annan Foundation."
Bach Speaks in Lausanne, Moscow
European Athletics leaders are meeting in Lausanne this week where IOC President Thomas Bach is scheduled to speak to the sports leaders. He’ll address the group Friday morning at the Moevenpick Hotel.
On October 21, Bach will attend the World Olympians Forum in Moscow. The one-day forum is organized by the World Olympians Association.
Sri Lanka, Kuwait on Notice
The NOC of Sri Lanka is put on notice to solve autonomy issues involving the government by the end of the year. The deadline from the IOC follows a meeting in Lausanne Oct. 13.
The IOC describes as "constructive'' and "fruitful'' the meetings with a Sri Lankan delegation led by Sports Minister Dayasiri Jayasekara. The IOC side was led by Executive Board member Patrick Hickey, who heads such inquiries.
The IOC says there is agreement that "the revision process for the sports legislation will be completed by the end of this year.''
Also on Tuesday, the IOC gave the Kuwait NOC an October 27 deadline to resolve issues over its national sports law.
Written by Ed Hula.
Home page and top photo credit: IOC
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