IOC Chief to Attend UN Refugees Summit

(ATR) Thomas Bach continues his quest to highlight the contribution refugees can make in sport on a trip to New York next week.

Around the Rings is told that the IOC chief travels to the U.S. on Sunday. He will attend the Summit for Refugees and Migrants at UN headquarters on Monday. He’ll also attend some of the 71st Session of the UN General Assembly.

Bach will meet UN general secretary Ban Ki-Moon, with discussions likely to include how the IOC can build on the success of the Refugee Olympic Team at the Rio Games. Plans may soon be put in place to have a refugee team compete at the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics.

The IOC president will be accompanied by Syrian and South Sudanese refugees, and Refugee Olympic Team athletes Yusra Mardini and Yiech Pur Biel. They were among the 10 refugee athletes who participated at the Rio Olympics.

Swimmer Mardini from Syria competed for Germany. Pur Biel from South Sudan represented Kenya in the 800m.

While in New York, Bach will hold meetings with heads of state. No further details were disclosed by the IOC. He’s also scheduled to attend a HeforShe special event, part of a solidarity campaign for gender equality initiated by UN Women.

The IOC confirmed the Refugee Olympic Team in the summer. Olympic Solidarity covered travel and other participation expenses for the athletes and team officials. Bach promised to continue to support them after the Games.

Last year, the IOC created a special fund of $2 million to help refugees amid the worldwide migrant crisis. More than 15 NOCs made use of this fund and helped identify refugee athletes with the potential to qualify for the Olympics.

Reported by Mark Bisson

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