Forges to Mandiner: “Thank you for the support of the entire Hungarian Olympic family”
In Mumbai, he met with Hungarian IOC member Balázs Forges Mandiner, who said the following after his election:
“The IOC’s decision is an acknowledgment and expression of confidence. This recognition and trust is directed primarily to Hungary and Hungarian sports. My job remains to serve the Olympic Movement and Hungarian sports as one team. As one team member among many.” – said Balázs Forges, who continued with expressions of thanks.
Thank you for the united support of the entire Hungarian Olympic Family, the Hungarian Olympic Committee, President Zsolt Gyulay, past and present IOC members Pál Schmidt and Daniel Gyorta, as well as our other heroes.
I’m counting on Pal Schmidt’s advice in the future as well – he’s spent four decades in the IOC, everything is on his little finger, he knows everyone, he knows everything, and he has great authority among the members – Most notably, the new member of the Hungarian International Olympic Committee.
Then he continued: “In addition to promoting Hungarian sports, I want to work to ensure that the Olympic idea, movement, values and competitions remain attractive to younger generations, so that emerging sports that are gaining strength in the world also gain strength in Hungary, and that traditional Hungarian sports retain their weight and place in the Olympic movement – Balázs Fürjes also pointed out the role of old and new sports. he added: “We will also need a new kind of thinking here, and it is worth considering what Thomas Bach says several times a week:
We have to change so that we are not at the mercy of the changes that occur in the world. We have to change, otherwise we will change against our will.”
– Balázs Fürjes concluded his statement to Mandiner, who from today belongs to a special elite club in the world of sports.
Who are the members of the International Olympic Committee?
The IOC was founded and continues to operate as an elite closed club on the basis of good service and voluntary participation. It is not under the authority of anyone, and its rules are determined only by joint decisions of the internal members, and they are the ones who decide whether or not to accept anyone into their ranks. They do not have to accept anyone from anywhere, any country, continent or organization, and no one can delegate a member to the IOC.
Acceptance of membership is almost entirely discretionary. The 100 members, or the IOC General Assembly composed of them, decide this. For 130 years, the IOC has maintained its organizational structure, which is completely unique in world sports.
Four types of membership are distinguished in the IOC Statutes, which are as follows:
· Permanent Membership (Individual Membership), this member will be the IOC member elected due to his character, meaning that membership lasts until the age of 70 or more, and Pal Schmidt was also such a member, to whom Balazs Fürjes now follows among the permanent members.
· Members arbitrarily selected from the presidents of international professional sports federations.
· Members shall be arbitrarily selected from among the Presidents of National Olympic Committees, who will be members of the IOC, on the basis of their office, for at most the duration of their term of office.
· Furthermore, membership of the International Olympic Committee in the Athletes Committee. They are elected by the athletes participating in the Olympic Games for a fixed term of 8 years, non-extendable, and our current member is Olympic champion Daniel Gyorta, whose term expires next year and who we hope will be succeeded by the three-time winner. Olympic champion Aron Szilagyi if elected by athletes.
application
To become a member, an applicant must submit an application introducing themselves, their work, and their commitment to the Olympic Movement. This is the only written material and the most important part of becoming a member. In the case of permanent membership, nothing else is legally required, but it greatly strengthens the application if the recommendation of the applicant’s National Olympic Committee and potential IOC members behind the applicant can also be supported. This has also been the case with Balázs Fürjes, since the decision of the Presidency of the Hungarian Olympic Committee on 27 March 2023, which clearly identified him as a candidate authorized by the MOB.
If a permanent member is elected, the qualities, achievements, work completed and application presented by the appointee are decisive – and the IOC considers how much added value can be expected from the work of the appointee candidate based on all this.
In comparison, this process can take place at different speeds for individual applicants, usually within one or two years, which is considered fast, or slowly, which can take years, but it may also happen that the candidate is not accepted into the ranks of IOC members. The nomination of Balázs Fürjes in the spring and his election in the fall is recognition in all respects and confirms the accuracy of the decision.
Elite Diversity Club
The IOC has always paid attention to the fact that the composition of the membership reflects as much vitality and broadness as possible, that is, the rank of the organization is given not only by former great champions, but also by experienced entrepreneurs with experience in other areas. From life, experts with experience in organizing sports competitions, with individuals with the appropriate capital, even former diplomats, government representatives or diplomats, or members of ruling councils. As previously mentioned about Mandiner, this time around eight new members have been trusted in addition to Balázs Fürjes, who come from a wide range of areas of expertise. You can read about it in this article.
