International Olympic Committee

The International Olympic Committee is the organization that leads the Olympic Movement and selects host cities, while coordinating the framework for the Olympic Games.

Olympic Charter: The governing document that sets the rules, principles, and organizational structure of the Olympic Movement. It defines the IOC’s authority and the responsibilities of the bodies it recognizes.
Pierre de Coubertin: A French educator and historian who helped found the modern Olympic Movement. He was the driving force behind the IOC’s creation in 1894.
Thomas Bach: A German sports administrator and former fencer who served as IOC president from 2013 to 2025. His presidency oversaw Olympic Agenda 2020 and the creation of Olympic Refugee Teams.
International Paralympic Committee: The global organization that governs the Paralympic Movement and oversees the Paralympic Games. It governs the Paralympics separately, although the events often share Olympic host infrastructure.
Olympic boycotts: Organized refusals by countries or athletes to participate in the Olympic Games for political or other reasons. Boycotts have tested the IOC’s claims of political neutrality and disrupted Games participation.
International sports federation: An international organization that governs a sport and sets its rules for global competition. These federations oversee their sports at the Games within the Olympic framework.
Demetrios Vikelas: A Greek businessman and writer who served as the IOC’s first president. His presidency bridged the IOC’s founding and the first modern Olympic Games.
Juan Antonio Samaranch: A Spanish sports administrator who led the IOC as president from 1980 to 2001. He expanded the IOC’s commercial model and strengthened its global influence.
World Anti-Doping Agency: An international agency that coordinates anti-doping policies and promotes drug-free sport. WADA sets anti-doping standards with a governance structure distinct from the IOC.
Munich massacre: The 1972 attack at the Munich Olympics in which Palestinian militants killed 11 members of the Israeli team. The attack transformed security planning and exposed the limits of keeping politics outside the Games.

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