Riccardo Schiroli in Quebec City
“We will examine the memorandum of understanding that the 2 Federations will send us and we will come back to them as soon as possibile. But yes, a joint bid between baseball and softball is a possibility”.
International Olympic Commitee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge postponed his press conference from 6.30 to 8.30 pm and, in the end, did not have the big news for baseball and softball fans around the world.
Rogge, who didn’t waste many words throughout the press briefing, had anyway something very important, and that could prove to be promising, to say: “We will make changes in the program and we will add one sport to the 2020 Games during the September 2013 session”.
Rogge explained to the journalists that his last 17 months as the President of the IOC have more goals: a successful edition of the London Games, some changes to the WADA anti doping code, a progress in the campaign against illegal betting and selecting the host for the 2018 Youth Games: “I won’t have a chance to get bored in this last 17 months” Rogge said.
Before leaving, Rogge added that: “Quebec City has been an excellent location for SportAccord“.
The last day of the Convention had began with the awarding of the World Chess Federation with the Spirit of Sport for the project “Chess brngs freedom”.
The most important accomplishment of the Convention came in early afternoon. The IOC and the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) announced the signing of a new revenue sharing agreement that will govern the financial relationship between the 2 parties for 2 decades, beginning 2020.
“I would like to thank Jacques Rogge and the IOC, who worked so diligently to find a solution that works for all parties” said USOC Chairman Larry Probst
The deal re-structures how top sponsorships and US television revenues are shared.
The 2013 SportAccord Convention will happen in St. Petersburg (Russia).
