UN Opens Olympic Museum; Rio 2016 Sports Council; Stories of the Year

UN Opens Olympic Museum

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon donated his tracksuit and torch used during the London 2012 torch relay to a newly opened museum at UN headquarters in New York City.

"I ran with the torch and, later, proudly carried the Olympic banner in the stadium," Ban said of his role in the opening ceremony. "Of the eight outstanding personalities who shared that honor with me, no less than four were acknowledged for their United Nations connections." Those would be Muhammad Ali, musician Daniel Barenboim, Haile Gebrselassie, and Marina Silva, the former Environment Minister of Brazil, a UNEP Champion of the Earth.

"That the organizers chose to honor the United Nations so visibly spoke volumes to me about the close links between the Olympic Movement and the United Nations. Those ties go far beyond shared principles and ideals. They translate into everyday collaborations that are helping improve the lives of people in need in all regions."

On hand for Tuesday's ceremony were Olympic figure skating champion Sarah Hughes and Mark Lyall Grant,the U.K.’s ambassador to the UN.

"Before they even began the London Olympics had a second world record: for the first time, all participating nations had female competitors. This is a huge success," said Ban.

"Sport is a powerful tool for empowering girls and women. The Olympic and Paralympic Games may be over, but the legacy lives on. Let us thank the Government of the United Kingdom, the city of London and the Organizing Committee for setting new standards for sustainability and raising the bar for future hosts."

Rio 2016 Sports Council

The Rio 2016 Sports Council debriefed on the London Olympic Games.

A statement from the organizing committee says the Council met on Tuesday.

"It’s very important that we meet regularly," said Ricardo Prado, Olympic swimming medalist and president of the Rio 2016 Sports Council. "We see that the work of the London Council brought important results for the Olympic Games and we bet that we would also do a great job cooperating for the Games in 2016."

The Sports Council helps guide the sports department and offers technical assistance for other athlete-related issues.

Rio 2016 says the next council meeting comes in February.

Olympic Honors

The 2012 Olympic Games were determined the fifth-biggest sport story of the year, according to U.S. editors and news directors.

On Wednesday, the Associated Press published its findings of the vote, which found the Penn State University sex scandal the biggest sport story of the year for the second time running.

"Michael Phelps retired from swimming after setting an Olympic record with his 22nd medal at a Summer Games bursting with memorable performances," the AP wrote. "Usain Bolt became the first man to successfully defend both the 100- and 200-meter dash titles. And the host country racked up 65 medals in an Olympics so successful for Britain that it barely even rained."

The ongoing Lance Armstrong fallout was second. He lost his seven Tour de France titles in 2012 following near-proof that he used performance-enhancing drugs. The resignation from coaching of Pat Summitt, who won a gold medal as a coach and player for the U.S. women’s basketball, was voted the ninth-biggest story.

...Within the Netherlands, gold medallist Epke Zonderland was named the Dutch male athlete of the year for his performance on the high bar, and swimmer Ramoni Kromowidjojo earned the women’s title for her two medals. The women’s hockey team won the team title for defending their gold medal in London.

Queen Beatrix hosted the medalists from the Olympics and Paralympics in a ceremony at her palace on Tuesday. IOC member from the Netherlands the Prince of Orange said Dutch people would remember the teams’ performance for a "long time" and urged them in Rio to "always be better, higher and stronger, as the motto of the IOC says."

Briefs...

...India’s sports minister told parliament he expects the Indian Olympic Association ban to be lifted soon. "We have spoken to the IOC and they have given an assurance that Indian sportspersons do not suffer," he was quoted by local media. "But government is working twenty-four hours to ensure to resolve the issue. The government is confident that the issues between the IOC and IOA can be resolved in time."

...Olympian Taro Aso is tapped to become Japan’s new finance minister. Aso was a member of the Japanese shooting team at the 1976 Olympics. He also served as prime minister from 2008-2009.

...Russia will be the "leader of world sport" by 2018, says the country’s sports minister Vitaly Mutko. Mutko made the comments Wednesday, saying the Summer Universiade in Kazan next year starts a five-year span of hosting mega sporting events, including the 2014 Winter Olympics and 2018 World Cup. "The close attention of the whole international sports community will be fixed upon Russia," he was quoted by RIA Novosti. "Thanks to these potent projects, new jobs will appear, new infrastructure will be created and the investment appeal of the regions will increase."

Written by Ed Hula III.

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