MIKEE: I.O.C. IS WATCHING
THE Philippines is again active in the radar of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) following a clash of opinions on proposed amendments to the POC constitution between two groups in the national body’s Executive Board. “We at the IOC are regularly in touch,” Mikee Cojuangco-jaworski, the IOC’S representative to the Philippines, told Tuesday’s online Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum.
Cojuangco-jaworski, who was recently elected to the powerful IOC Executive Board, also told members of the POC Executive Board to settle the amendment issues ahead of the organization’s elections in November.
“These [amendments to the POC constitution] are a priority of IOC and it was communicated during last year’s [special] election,” Cojuangco-jaworski said. “The IOC has been hoping that the POC constitution would be amended so that the new one would take effect by the November election.”
A year ago on Tuesday, Cycling Association Head Rep. Abraham Tolentino was named president in an Ioc-ordered special election, beating athletics chief Philip Ella Juico by four votes. The elections were the second for 2019—then first in February when boxing’s Ricky Vargas was elected to the top post in lieu of Jose Cojuangco Jr.
In that July elections, the IOC told the POC to amend its constitution to prevent multiple political exercises.
The POC Executive Committee met twice within a week to tackle the proposed amendments that focused on a 70-year-old age cap, exclusion of national sports associations (NSAS) which are no longer recognized by their international federations and barring an individual from heading more than one NSA.
Seven members of the POC Executive
Committee thumbed down the amendments proposed by Tolentino and former president Ricky Vargas, who heads the body’s committee on constitutional amendments.
“There are many developments in the Olympic movement and we want to keep up. The IOC wants the amendments to take effect before the different NOCS hold their elections,” added the Busan 2002 Asian Games equestrian gold medalist in the session presented by San Miguel Corp. Go For Gold, Amelie Hotel Manila, Braska Restaurant and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. and powered by Smart, with Upstream Medias as official webcast partner.
Cojuangco-jaworski, also the Philippine Equestrian Federation president, stressed that the POC elections should go on as scheduled in November “since this provision is found in the POC constitution and by-laws.”