Case studies/International Olympics Commission

The International Olympic Committee is a corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas on 23 June 1894. Its membership consists of the 205 National Olympic Committees. The IOC organizes the modern Olympic Games held in Summer and Winter, every four years. The first Summer Olympics organized by the International Olympic Committee held in Athens, Greece, in 1896; the first Winter Olympics in Chamonix, France, in 1924. Until 1992, both Summer and Winter Olympics were held in the same year. After that year, however, the IOC shifted the Winter Olympics to the even years between Summer Games, to help space the planning of the two events two years apart from one another.

Mission and Role

The mission of the IOC is to promote Olympism throughout the world and to lead the Olympic Movement. The IOC's role is to: Encourage and support the promotion of ethics in sport as well as education of youth through sport and to dedicate its efforts to ensuring that, in sport, the spirit of fair play prevails and violence is banned; Encourage and support the organization, development and coordination of sport and sports competitions; Ensure the regular celebration of the Olympic Games; Cooperate with the competent public or private organizations and authorities in the endeavor to place sport at the service of humanity and thereby to promote peace; Take action in order to strengthen the unity and to protect the independence of the Olympic Movement; Act against any form of discrimination affecting the Olympic Movement; Encourage and support the promotion of women in sport at all levels and in all structures with a view to implementing the principle of equality of men and women; Lead the fight against doping in sport; Encourage and support measures protecting the health of athletes; Oppose any political or commercial abuse of sport and athletes; Encourage and support the efforts of sports organizations and public authorities to provide for the social and professional future of athletes; Encourage and support the development of sport for all; Encourage and support a responsible concern for environmental issues, to promote sustainable development in sport and to require that the Olympic Games are held accordingly; Promote a positive legacy from the Olympic Games to the host cities and host countries; Encourage and support initiatives blending sport with culture and education; Encourage and support the activities of the International Olympic Academy (IOA) and other institutions which dedicate themselves to Olympic education.

Organization

The IOC Session

The Session is the general meeting of the members of the IOC, held once a year in which each member has one vote. It is the IOC’s supreme organ and its decisions are final. Extraordinary Sessions may be convened by the President or upon the written request of at least one third of the members. Among others, the powers of the Session are: To adopt or amend the Olympic Charter. To elect the members of the IOC, the Honorary President and the honorary members. To elect the President, the Vice-Presidents and all other members of the IOC Executive Board. To elect the host city of the Olympic Games.

The IOC Executive Board

The IOC Executive Board consists of the President, four Vice-Presidents and ten other members. All members of the IOC Executive Board are elected by the Session, in a secret ballot, by a majority of the votes cast. The IOC Executive Board assumes the general overall responsibility for the administration of the IOC and the management of its affairs. The IOC Session elects, by secret ballot, the IOC President from among its members for a term of eight years renewable once for four years. The current IOC President, Jacques Rogge, was re-elected for a second, four-year term on 9 October 2009. Former President Juan Antonio Samaranch has been elected Honorary President For Life.

Olympic marketing

Revenue

The Olympic Movement generates revenue through five major programs. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) manages broadcast partnerships and the TOP worldwide sponsorship program. The Organizing Committees for the Olympic Games (OCOGs) manage domestic sponsorship, ticketing and licensing programs within the host country under the direction of the IOC. The Olympic Movement generated a total of more than US$4 billion in revenue during the most recent Olympic quadrennium (2001–2004).

Revenue distribution

The IOC distributes some of Olympic marketing revenue to organizations throughout the Olympic Movement to support the staging of the Olympic Games and to promote the worldwide development of sport. The IOC retains approximately 8% of Olympic marketing revenue for the operational and administrative costs of governing the Olympic Movement.

The Organizing Committees of the Olympic Games (OCOGs)

The IOC provides TOP program contributions and Olympic broadcast revenue to the OCOGs to support the staging of the Olympic Games and Olympic Winter Games: TOP Program Revenue to OCOGs; the two OCOGs of each Olympic quadrennium generally share approximately 50% of TOP program revenue and value-in-kind contributions, with approximately 30% provided to the summer OCOG and 20% provided to the winter OCOG. Broadcast Revenue to OCOGs; the IOC contributes 49% of the Olympic broadcast revenue for each Games to the OCOG. During the 2001 - 2004 Olympic quadrennium, the Salt Lake 2002 Organizing Committee received US$443 million in broadcast revenue from the IOC, and the Athens 2004 Organizing Committee received US$732 million. Domestic Program Revenue to OCOGs; the OCOGs generate substantial revenue from the domestic marketing programs that they manage within the host country, including domestic sponsorship, ticketing and licensing.

National Olympic Committees (NOCs)

The NOCs receive financial support for the training and development of Olympic teams, Olympic athletes and Olympic hopefuls. The IOC distributes TOP program revenue to each of the NOCs throughout the world. The IOC also contributes Olympic broadcast revenue to Olympic Solidarity, an IOC organization that provides financial support to NOCs with the greatest need. The continued success of the TOP program and Olympic broadcast agreements has enabled the IOC to provide increased support for the NOCs with each Olympic quadrennium. The IOC provided approximately US$318.5 million to NOCs for the 2001 - 2004 quadrennium.hi 5

International Olympic Sports Federations (IFs)

The IOC is now the largest single revenue source for the majority of IFs, with its contributions of Olympic broadcast revenue that assist the IFs in the development of their respective sports worldwide. The IOC provides financial support from Olympic broadcast revenue to the 28 IFs of Olympic summer sports and the seven IFs of Olympic winter sports after the completion of the Olympic Games and the Olympic Winter Games, respectively. The continually increasing value of Olympic broadcast partnership has enabled the IOC to deliver substantially increased financial support to the IFs with each successive Games. The seven winter sports IFs shared US$85.8 million in Salt Lake 2002 broadcast revenue. The contribution to the 28 summer sports IFs from Athens 2004 broadcast revenue has not yet been determined, but the contribution is expected to mark a significant increase over the US$190 million that the IOC provided to the summer IFs following Sydney 2000.

Other Organizations

The IOC contributes Olympic marketing revenue to the programs of various recognized international sports organizations, including the International Paralympic Committee, the Paralympic Organizing Committee, and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

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