On the Scene -- Olympic "Waiting Room" Points to Future for IOC

(ATR) Jacques Rogge and International World Games Association president Ron Froelich see future elements of the Olympics at the World Games.

Speaking at a press conference Friday in Cali, Colombia, host of the 2013 World Games, Rogge said there are "many things" the IOC could learn from the World Games.

He noted the "shared resources," of the Games, specifically with regard to medical staff as one thing the IOC could adopt. At the World Games, a pool of trained medical staff assists all teams.

"This is, I think, a very good idea," said Rogge, a sports surgeon by profession. "I could give you many many more examples."

"There’s many things [I] can learn from the World Games and my successor will learn from the World Games," he said in reference to the next IOC President.

Froelich called the World Games the Olympics’ "waiting room." Softball and squash, two World Games sports, are vying for inclusion on the 2020 Olympic Program. Rugby Sevens is participating in its final World Games before joining the Olympic ranks for 2016.

"The [International Federations] and the athletes appreciate that this is the waiting room for possible inclusion in the summer Olympic program," he said.

"Many of the sports that are in the Olympic Program today came from the World Games. It’s important that the athletes have the belief that they may be one day in the Olympic Program.

"They work just as hard as the Olympians working to participate in the Olympic Program. We hope there will be more of the new sports that come through the IWGA programs."

The World Games are available to recognized federations, sports that are not on the Olympic Program.

Rogge, who attended the first World Games in 1981 as chef de mission for the Belgian team, praised the growth of the event.

"I have seen a very healthy development,"he said. "I have seem them grow, and they have developed very well without the traditional threat to all growing organizations which is bureaucracy and inflation."

Froelich says that the future of the World Games is to ensure athletes remain the focus of the Games.

"It’s the athletes that make the Games. Without your athletes, without the support of your athletes you have nothing. We make sure our athletes are first, second and third.

"We want to make sure for the next Games, anything we can improve on in this Games we can improve on for the next Games."

Wroclaw, Poland will host the 2017 World Games.

Colombian Sports Minster Andres Botero attended the press conference and he said now, Cali has "all the capabilities"to bid for other high-profile international sporting events such as the Youth Olympic Games.

"Maybe we have two cities that can possibly host and bid to host the Youth Olympic Games," he said. Medellin was unsuccessful in its bid to stage the 2018 Youth Olympic Games.

Buenos Aires won that race, "unfortunately for a South American city," he said as now another South American YOG bid is eight to 12 years away, he said.

Botero, also an IOC member, said he has been asked "many times" about bidding for a World Cup or Olympics.

He acknowledged the economic realities of the event, saying the scale is too big for Colombia at the moment.

"We have to keep dreaming, and we have to move up in life," he added. "Just to apply for the Youth Olympic Games shows we’re in the major leagues. Let’s start with the Youth Olympic Games and dream on."

Competition in the World Games runs until August 4.

Written by Ed Hula III.

20 Years at #1: Your best source of news about the Olympics is AroundTheRings.com, for subscribers only.