Former UN Secretary General Takes IOC Ethics Post

(ATR) Ban Ki Moon says he wants to re-earn the “the trust and respect of the public” as Ethics Commission chair.

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(ATR) Ban Ki Moon says he wants to re-earn the "the trust and respect of the public" in his chairmanship of the IOC Ethics Commission.

Moon was elected to the position, 74 votes to four, during the 2017 IOC Session in Lima, Peru. Moon wrapped up his role of Secretary General of the United Nations and withdrew from the 2017 South Korean Presidential race this year. In 2016 Moon received the Olympic Cup on behalf of the United Nations for its role in helping create the inaugural refugee Olympic team.

IOC members Robin Mitchell from Fiji and Angela Ruggiero from the United States were also overwhelminglyelected to the commission. Ruggiero’s IOC membership will end this February when new members of the athlete’s commission are elected at the PyeongChang 2018 Olympics.

Samuel Schmid, former president of Switzerland, and Hanqin Xue, a Chinese justice, were the final two elected commission members. Schmid is currently chairing a commission investigating manipulations of the anti-doping system at the Sochi Olympic laboratory.

"I assure you that working together with commission members and chief ethics and compliance officer, I will do my best to contribute to great success of the IOC," Moon said to the session. "Further promote good governance of IOC and significance of true sportsmanship, fairness and strong community as primary tenants to strive to attain."

The election of two current IOC members triggered questions by other members about the ongoing independence of the commission. Former commission chair Youssoupha Ndiaye said in a report that independence is "a daily concern," but the commission remains "advisory and consultative regarding issues of ethics with which the IOC has to deal with." Ndiaye said the election of a non-IOC member to the commission chairmanship should help with independence concerns. After February only one member of the commission will be an active IOC member.

Some members addressed the issue of if the commission is strong enough, or needs to be restructured to properly do its job. IOC member Richard Peterkin told Around the Rings that such concerns were "considered, and will be revisited."

Ruggiero, speaking a press briefing after the second day of the 2017 IOC Session said she thought "it is a strength," to be a former IOC member on the commission. Ruggiero will begin her term on the commission as a current member this November, before allowing to keep her seat as a former member.

"It is encouraging that I'm able to take that perspective to another body that thinks about how we protect the olympic movement and the athletes," Ruggiero said. "At the end of the day the issues that arise could be about athletes. The ethics committee deals with all stakeholders."

Newly elected members to the ethics commission can serve up to three terms of four years each. Ndiaye leaves the commission after 10 years.

"The commission is not only a hub for debate, but also a place where we question its independence continuously since we have to make sure the credibility is always received in a positive way by the outside world," Ndiaye said. "All I can add is that ethics is a daily undertaking, a task for everyone. All of us have to work towards ensuring credibility of the organization and to make sure that it is always perceived as credible."

Written by Aaron Bauerwith additional reporting by Kevin Nutley

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