Ser Miang Ng of Singapore has become the second declared candidate for the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). In Paris Thursday, current Vice President of the IOC Ng made the announcement that he will join German Thomas Bach, who declared his candidacy last week, in the presidential election campaign.
The announcement was made at Sorbonne University, a site chosen because in 1894 it became the birthplace of the modern Olympics.
Ng’s platform will be based on the greater involvement of youth in the Olympic movement and a refocus on human legacies.
“The future of the Olympic movement lies in the youth,” he said.
Current IOC President Jacques Rogge will step down after a 12-year term when the new president is elected at the 125th IOC Session in Buenos Aires, Argentina on September 10. Ng is best known for successfully delivering the first Youth Olympic Games in Signapore in 2010 as Chair – an initiative that was created by Rogge.
He is also Vice President of the Singapore Olympic Council and was involved with the IOC 2012 Olympic Bid Evaluation Commission; the coordination commissions for Beijing 2008 and London 2012 and served as Singapore’s Ambassador to Hungary and Norway. 64-year-old Ng was also appointed to coordinate IOC relief efforts in Japan after a devestating tsunami struck the nation in 2011.
Other candidates are expected to join the race prior to the June 10th deadline. Among those rumoured to have interest are Richard Carrion from Puerto Rico, CK Wu from Taiwan and Sergey Bubka from Ukraine.
More details to follow on GamesBids.com.
