Kim Jaeyeol, IOC Executive Board Member: "I Want to Help Young Colleagues Grow in International Sports Administration"

First press briefing after election to IOC Executive Board
"A great honor... it shows Korea's standing has risen"

Kim Jaeyeol, President of the International Skating Union (ISU), who has been elected as the second Korean member of the Executive Board of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), said at his first press briefing after being elected to the IOC Executive Board, "I want to help younger colleagues grow in the field of international sports administration." He added, "It has now become my role to make sports more accessible to young people."

On the 9th (Korean time), Kim held a meeting with Korean reporters at the ISU public relations center "Home of Skating," set up at the NH Milano Congress Centre hotel in Milan, Italy, where he shared his thoughts on being elected to the IOC Executive Board and his vision for future activities.

Kim Jaeyeol, Executive Board Member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and President of the International Skating Union (ISU), is giving remarks at a press briefing held on the 9th (local time) at the NH Milano Congress Centre in Italy. [Photo by Yonhap News Agency]

On the 4th, Kim was elected to a four-year term as an Executive Board member at the 145th IOC Session Executive Board election held at the Main Media Centre (MMC) for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, receiving 84 votes in favor, 10 against, and 6 abstentions out of 100 valid votes. This is the second time a Korean has been elected to the Executive Board, the de facto top decision-making body of the IOC, following the late former IOC Vice President Kim Unyong. The IOC Executive Board decides on major policies and key issues, including the procedures for selecting Olympic host cities.

Kim said, "Personally, it is such a great honor." He added, "The fact that I was able to come to this position means that our country's standing has risen that much," and continued, "I was able to be elected because the efforts of many senior figures have been recognized in the international sports community."

Kim said, "IOC President Kirsty Coventry has many ideas, and I plan to work with her for the development of the Olympic Games," adding, "Since the new President took office, the IOC has been listening to people from various professional fields about ways to develop the Olympics and has been engaging in active discussions."

Kim emphasized that the number of Koreans working in international sports organizations is increasing and that he wants to help them grow. "Last fall in Lausanne, Switzerland, I had a meeting with about 30 young Korean staff members not only from the IOC but also from the ISU and other International Federations (IFs)," he said. "Right after the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympics, when I hosted the same kind of event, there were about 12 people, but the number has increased significantly since then. I was proud to see the young people who had worked for the Pyeongchang Organizing Committee settle in Lausanne," he said.

As for how he could contribute to Korea's sports diplomacy as an IOC Executive Board member, he maintained a neutral stance in his response.

Kim said, "Korea has successfully hosted not only the Summer and Winter Olympics but also all other events, including the Youth Olympic Games. Korea has a high satisfaction level and has built a great deal of trust regarding bidding for and successfully operating events," adding, "We are currently at the stage of discussing how to decide future hosts of the Olympics and other events, so once a final decision is made, I will have to think about it then."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.