IOC Chief Demands Action from Kuwait

(ATR) Thomas Bach says the IOC won’t call for Sheikh Ahmad’s prison sentence to be quashed before Kuwait’s suspension is lifted.

"No. This is justice in Kuwait," he told a press conference in Budapest following the Hungarian NOC’s 120th anniversary celebrations.

"This has nothing to do with the sports law and nothing to do with sports. The IOC will respect the laws of a sovereign country," Bach told reporters.

"What we insist on however is that the sports law is in compliance. This is also in the interests of the Kuwait authorities and athletes to ensure this compliance and not forcing their other federations, other sports organizations to escalate the issue," he added.

"They have to come to the table."

Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah was handed a suspended prison term last week by a court in Kuwait; he was forced to pay a fine of $3300 to avoid jail time.

The ANOC and Asian Olympic chief faces misdemeanor charges that stem from criticisms he made three years ago on Kuwaiti TV about the governance of sport in Kuwait. The Gulf state’s NOC is currently suspended by the IOC amid a bitter dispute over its sports law that IOC autonomy tsar Pat Hickey last week said had become "very personal".

Despite demands for the sports law to be amended, the Kuwait dispute with Olympic Council of Asia chief Ahmad escalated last week when officials suggested they may expel the OCA headquarters from Kuwait, where it’s been located for the past 35 years. An OCA statement described the threat as "retribution" for the IOC suspension of the NOC on Oct. 27. It’s the third time Kuwait has been suspended by the IOC in the past five years.

Bach told reporters in Budapest that it was "pretty obvious" what Kuwait had to do, repeating Hickey and the IOC’s strong message to government authorities in recent weeks.

"The sports law in Kuwait has to become compliant with the Olympic Charter," he said.

"The IOC has always made it clear we are ready to discuss, we are ready to address the different stipulations of the law which may have to be changed. It is now in the hands of Kuwait authorities to accept this offer."

Ahmad, who denies wrongdoing, was meant to be in Budapest for the Hungarian celebrations. But other duties called. However, he was expected to travel to Kiev Tuesday for events to mark the 25th anniversary of the Ukrainian NOC. Bach and other IOC officials are in Kiev for a gala dinner.

European Olympic Committees president Pat Hickey did not travel to Kiev after the Hungarian NOC event. Instead, he visited the Hungarian city of Györ, host of the European Youth Olympic Festival in 2017, to inspect the progress of preparations.

Written by Mark Bisson

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