IOC Chair Coventry Affirms South Korea's Commitment to 2036 Olympic Bid: "Will Cooperate Closely"

First Visit to Korea Since Taking Office
Meets with Minister Choi Hwiyoung
WADA General Assembly Opens with Over 2,000 Sports Officials in Attendance

Kirsty Coventry, Chair of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), visited Korea for the first time since taking office last June and affirmed the Korean government's commitment to bidding for the 2036 Summer Olympics, expressing her intention to work closely together. Chair Coventry came to Korea to attend the 6th World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) General Assembly 2025, which opened at BEXCO in Busan on the 2nd.

Speaking with reporters that day, Chair Coventry said, "Korea has already hosted two remarkable events in the past six years," adding, "In my meeting with Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Choi Hwiyoung, I confirmed the Korean government's determination to continue promoting sports events." The two events Chair Coventry referred to are the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics and the 2024 Gangwon Winter Youth Olympics.

Choi Hwiyoung, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism (right), is taking a commemorative photo with Kirsty Coventry, Chair of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), at BEXCO in Haeundae-gu, Busan, where the 6th World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) General Assembly 2025 opened on the 2nd.
Photo by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Yonhap News

Chair Coventry stated, "We maintain a very strong cooperative relationship with the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee."

Chair Coventry is known to have a close relationship with Yoo Seungmin, President of the Korean Sport & Olympic Committee. Chair Coventry, a former swimmer from Zimbabwe, won consecutive gold medals in the women's 200m backstroke at the 2004 Athens Olympics and the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Yoo Seungmin also won a gold medal in men's singles table tennis at the 2004 Athens Olympics. Chair Coventry and President Yoo, who is one year older, developed their friendship while serving together as IOC Athletes' Commission members for four years starting from the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics. The term for IOC Athletes' Commission members is eight years; Chair Coventry served from the 2012 London Olympics, while President Yoo served from the 2016 Rio Olympics.

President Yoo also highlighted their friendship by sending a congratulatory message shortly after Chair Coventry was elected in March, stating, "Having built a long-standing friendship as IOC Athletes' Commission members, I look forward to working closely together based on mutual trust."

The WADA General Assembly is the world's largest international conference in the field of sports, held every six years. Busan has elevated the status of Korean sports by becoming the first city in Asia to host the WADA General Assembly.

This General Assembly is attended by more than 2,000 sports figures from 191 countries around the world, including WADA President Witold Banka and Vice President Yang Yang, IOC Chair Coventry, IOC Honorary President Thomas Bach, and IOC Athletes' Commission Chair Emma Terho. There are also about 30 ministers and vice ministers of sports from various countries attending the assembly. At this General Assembly, amendments to the "World Anti-Doping Code," which all international sports federations and national anti-doping organizations must comply with for the next six years starting in 2027, as well as revisions to the "International Standards" for its implementation, are scheduled to be finalized.

On December 1, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Choi Hwiyoung met with WADA President Banka, and on December 2, he held successive meetings with IOC Chair Coventry, IOC Honorary President Bach, UAE Deputy Minister of Sports Alhajiri, Azerbaijan Minister of Youth and Sports Farid Gayibov, Estonia Minister of Culture Heidy Purga, and Kazakhstan Minister of Tourism and Sports Yerbol Mirzabossinov to discuss the future of sports, professional talent exchange, and cooperation for international sporting events.

At the opening ceremony of the WADA General Assembly, Minister Choi Hwiyoung stated, "The Korean government will continue to strengthen its support so that Korean sports can become an even more responsible partner in the world by enhancing international sports diplomacy, improving anti-doping capabilities, and expanding cooperation with international organizations."