<img src="https://d5nxst8fruw4z.cloudfront.net/atrk.gif?account=zLH0m1a8FRh2O7" style="display:none" height="1" width="1" alt="">

BOA to Host Olympic Solidarity Regional Workshop and CANOC General Assembly

Bridgetown –-The Barbados Olympic Association Inc. (BOA) will host two high-level meetings this month, the Olympic Solidarity Workshop and the Caribbean Association of National Olympic Committees (CANOC) General Assembly. The meetings take place at the Hilton Barbados Resort from October 14-17, 2014.

Olympic Solidarity is the funding agency for the International Olympic Committee. It is this agency, combined with the IOC’s NOC Relations Department that manages funding programmes. The Olympic Solidarity provides guidance and support, and also scrutinizes the activities of NOCs, to ensure they conform to the Olympic Statutes and the Olympic Charter.

CANOC has a membership of 26 countries from around the region, comprised mainly of National Olympic Committees with a few Associate Members such as Martinique, Guadeloupe, Turks and Caicos, Montserrat and Anguilla. CANOC is the body that advocates for NOCs in the English speaking Caribbean. Recently, CANOC was awarded the television rights to the 2016 Olympic Games, a major landmark achievement for the organisation that will benefit the people of the region.

President of the BOA, Steve Stoute, said that Barbados is very honoured to be selected as the host for these meetings, particularly the Olympic Solidarity workshop, as it demonstrates the regard in which Barbados is held by the Olympic body. “Annually, Olympic Solidarity organises a regional workshop for all NOCs in the Americas, with various management themes and at the same time, provides information on the funding programmes available for the four-year Olympiad. This workshop was usually held in Mexico but recently, the IOC decided to hold two workshops per annum in the Americas: one for Spanish-speaking countries and a second for English-speaking countries. We are very pleased that Barbados was given the honour of hosting the regional 2014 workshop for English-speaking countries in the Americas,” said Stoute.

The workshop will attract delegates from the English, French and Dutch-speaking countries in the Americas, inclusive of Canada and the United States. Its primary theme is good governance and transparency programmes within NOCs. “Barbados was chosen because we are renowned for maintaining a high level of governance procedures, management principles and structures,” Stoute said.

The highlight of the 2014 Annual General Assembly of CANOC is a live video address by the President of the International Olympic Committee, Dr. Thomas Bach. This interface will create history as it is the first time since being elected IOC President approximately one year ago that Bach will address a regional body. “I met with the president in Lausanne last week and he accepted my invitation to address the Assembly. We discussed a number of issues relating to the regional, continental and international Olympic movement. He has agreed to assist us with some of our local projects,” Stoute said.

The CANOC board elections will also be held. The President of the Trinidad Olympic Committee, Brian Lewis, is challenging Stoute, who has been president of this body for the last 15 years.

Delegates from Edmonton, Canada and Durban, South Africa, the two cities bidding to host the 2022 Commonwealth Games, will be on hand to explain to members why their city should be supported when the vote is taken in Auckland, New Zealand in 2015.