The Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee has announced a merger with the Paralympic Committee of Saudi Arabia. The decision was made during the recent general assembly of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee.
The organizations will now be joined under a single entity known as the Saudi Olympic & Paralympic Committee. The move is similar to decisions made by South Africa, Norway, and the United States to combine their Olympic and Paralympic committees over the last two decades.
Speaking on the merger, Prince Abdulaziz Bin Turki Al-Faisal, President of the Saudi Olympic Committee, stated, “we are pleased to declare the merging between the Saudi Paralympic Committee and the Saudi Olympic Committee to be officially a single entity named as the Saudi Paralympic and Olympic Committee.”
“This merging is a significant step that contributes in achieving the 2030 Saudi vision objectives in light of the unconditional support of Saudi sport by King Salman Bin Abdulaziz and HRH Prince Mohammed Bin Salman as a transitional phase through which we seek to write a new chapter and a renewed era that witnesses great Saudi sports achievements in various regional, continental and international platforms.”
“This integration is aimed at the development of the sports sector, the consolidation of the efforts and services provided to all categories of athletes, compliance with clear and unified plans, the provision of a link between athletes of all categories, the strengthening of the Saudi presence at various international platforms and encouraging practice of sport among society.”
It was also confirmed that Ahmed Al-Mugairin, president of the now defunct Paralympic Committee of Saudi Arabia, would be given a position as a board member on the new Saudi Olympic & Paralympic Committee.
Saudi Arabia has had a presence at the Olympic Games since 1972. The country is a much more recent addition to the Paralympic movement, sending its first athletes to the Paralympics in 1996.
The infant sports organization will be hoping to make history for the country with an inaugural appearance at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing. Although they are actively pursuing qualification for the Beijing Games, no Saudi athletes have currently qualified.
Regardless of Winter Olympic participation, it is clear a new charter of sporting history is beginning in Saudi Arabia. The merger represents the increased emphasis placed on international sports in the desert kingdom.
The Saudi Olympic & Paralympic Committee will likely play a leading role in the country’s sporting ambitions, as the kingdom prepares to host the World Combat Games in 2023, and the Asian Games in 2034.
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