Sheikh-Up Overshadows ANOC Tokyo

(ATR) Excitement mixed with uncertainty and anxiety swirls among the record 1,300 delegates from 206 countries convening in Tokyo for the XXIII ANOC General Assembly.

One lingering question, however, has been answered: Sheikh Ahmad, the popular and well-regarded ANOC president, announced Monday night that he will step down to deal with sticky legal and ethical matters. The Kuwaiti will officially inform the delegates on Wednesday as the assembly begins.

Sheikh Ahmad made it clear that he intends to return as president once he proves his innocence. He had been slated to run unopposed for another term as president, but that election is now postponed. Robin Mitchell of Fiji, the longest-serving vice president, will take over as interim president.

"There is a bit of uncertainty," Veda Bruno-Victor, secretary general of the Grenada Olympic Committee, tells Around the Rings. "We are waiting to hear exactly what’s happening, but we’re very relaxed. We’re not perturbed. We’re just looking at what is happening and we decide how we move forward. It’s a whole waiting exercise."

Bruno-Victor said she expected the Sheikh to stand down once the allegations became an issue.

"I suspect once you think that something is not going right, that you should take yourself out," she said. "Especially if you’re innocent. Get out and let nature take its course."

Will he or won’t he stand down had been the buzz as delegates began arriving last weekend at the Grand Prince Complex of hotels adjacent to the International Convention Center Pamir.

"Normally the excitement is we don’t have enough seats for the gala," said one longtime ANOC observer.

Instead, the fate of the Sheikh and the resulting shake-up was the prevailing topic of conversation, overshadowing the attractiveness of being in the 2020 Olympic city, the impending ANOCA presidential election and the preparations for the inaugural Beach Games.

Kevan Gosper, chair of the ANOC Modernization Follow Up Commission, tells ATR that there’s "a degree of anxiety" among the ANOC family.

"The Sheikh has done such an outstanding job," the former IOC member from Australia said. "He’s lifted the profile and the confidence of ANOC. He’s a highly respected individual and there is just concern that he’s stepping aside. He’s quite firm that it’s best for him to stand aside from the organization so he can address these personal issues. As far as all of us are concerned, we see him still as an innocent party. So he’s greatly admired."

Miriam Moyo, former president of the National Olympic Committee of Zambia, had a more optimistic viewpoint. She said that while the delegates want to know what’s going on with the Sheikh, "I think everybody is in high moods. I’m not anxious. Because at the end of the day, we will have the result. Be anxious and get sick. Or just be excited and see what the result is. I think that’s the way it is."

Eduardo Palomo Pacas, president of the Comite Olimpico de El Salvador, fears Sheikh Ahmad’s departure could have an adverse affect on the future of ANOC.

"It’s disconcerting," Palomo Pacas said. "Any time that you have a shake-up in the leadership that doesn’t come as a result of the process, there has to be an unknown element that always leaves the door open for an institution to go astray. And what we need to remind ourselves is that we are part of an institution that has a role and in that sense, it has to empower the Olympic committees.

"I think there are plenty of good people in the world that mean well and want to do well. We must reestablish the values of the Olympic Movement -- self-respect, selfless service, integrity. I think the institution has in its statutes what the process is and we need to follow it. We’ve got to let ourselves be guided by our principles."

Written and reported by Karen Rosen in Tokyo

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