Pakistan Olympic Association

13-Aug-2016

Dear President,
Dear Secretary General,

As you know, with the new flexibility provided by Olympic Agenda 2020, host cities now have the option of proposing new sports and events for inclusion in their respective editions of the Olympic Games. It is important to note that the host city proposals are not binding on future Games hosts and that such selection is decided for each edition of the Olympic Games.

In this context, the Organising Committee for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 proposed to include 5 sports in its edition of the Games, namely baseball/softball, karate, skateboarding, sport climbing, and surfing, in addition to the 28 sports already on the programme. This proposal was supported by the IOC Executive Board and has been accepted by the IOC Session that has just concluded in Rio de Janeiro.

The purpose of this letter, therefore, is to inform the NOCs of this decision and to give guidance on the practical implications on the membership and voting of the corresponding national federations governing those sports (if existing) within the NOCs’ governing bodies, in accordance with the rules of the Olympic Charter.

In particular, we refer to rules 28.1.2; 28.3 and 28.2.1 of the Olympic Charter, which state:

Rule 28.1.2: [Whatever their composition, NOCs must include]: all national federations affiliated to the IFs governing sports included in the programme of the Olympic Games or their representatives.

Rule 28.3: The voting majority of an NOC and of its executive body shall consist of the votes cast by the national federations referred to in paragraph 1.2 above or their representatives. When dealing with questions relating to the Olympic Games, only the votes cast by such federations and by the members of the executive body of the NOC are taken into consideration. […].

Rule 28.2.1: [The NOCs may include as members]: national federations affiliated to IFs recognised by the IOC, the sports of which are not included in the programme of the Olympic Games.

In view of the above, the NOCs will be required to include the corresponding national federations (if existing) affiliated to their respective IFs as recognised by the IOC – namely the World Baseball and Softball Confederation (WBSC); World Karate Federation (WKF); International Roller Sports Federation (FIRS); International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC); and International Surfing Association (ISA) - as voting members, and count them in the calculation of the voting majority and for the votes on specific matters in relation to the Olympic Games.

Note: In the case of skateboarding, a more specific approach may need to be adopted on a case by case basis, to best reflect the reality of the sport in your respective countries, and you may contact us for further information on this.

We fully understand the implications this may have for your NOC, in particular when those federations, if existing, are not already members of your NOC (under Rule 28.2.1 of the Olympic Charter). Therefore, we understand that some NOCs may need to consider a reasonable transition period. However, each NOC is kindly requested to make sure that those national federations (if existing) are included as voting members under Rules 28.1.2 and 28.3 of the Olympic Charter, as soon as possible and no later than 31 December 2017.

If those sports are, again, selected for the programme of the following edition of the Olympic Games (in 2024), those national federations will have to be maintained as voting members of your NOC, under Rules 28.1.2 and 28.3 of the Olympic Charter, until the conclusion of the Olympic Games in 2024 or as long as their sports continue to be on the programme of the Olympic Games.

If, by the conclusion of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, those sports have not been selected for the programme of the following edition of the Olympic Games (in 2024), the inclusion of those national federations as voting members under Rules 28.1.2 and 28.3 of the Olympic Charter will no longer be mandatory. The NOCs will, however, be free to retain such federations as (voting or non-voting) members under Rule 28.2.1 of the Olympic Charter, or not (at their entire discretion).

We hope this will be helpful and we thank you for your kind understanding and cooperation in this process. Should you have any specific queries in relation to the above, please feel free to contact us.

Yours sincerely,

Pere Miró Deputy Director General NOC Relations Director	Kit McConnell Sports Director	Howard Stupp Director of Legal Affairs