Tokyo 2020 chief Seiko Hashimoto expresses condolences over passing of ex-IOC President Jacques Rogge

By ANI

TOKYO: The Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Tokyo 2020) President Seiko Hashimoto on Monday extended his condolences on the passing of Jacques Rogge, former President of the International Olympic Committee.

Jacques was 79 years old. He was the eighth President of the IOC, from 2001 to 2013, after which he became Honorary President. Rogge was married to Anne, and leaves a son, a daughter and two grandchildren.

“I would like to express my sincere condolences on the passing of Jacques Rogge, the former President of the International Olympic Committee, who devoted himself to the promotion of the Olympic Movement during the radically changing times of the sporting world in the 2000s. As IOC President, he was one of the first to address the issue of raising interest in sport among younger generations, exemplified by his establishment of the Youth Olympic Games,” said Hashimoto in a release.

“The scene of former President Rogge holding up a card with the word “TOKYO” on it when he announced the decision to host the Tokyo 2020 Games at the IOC Session in September 2013 will forever remain in our memories. With the will to protect the Olympic values that former President Rogge worked so hard to achieve, we are determined to ensure that the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games will be safe, secure and successful events which will spur the further development of the international sporting community,” she added.

A life-long sports fan and an accomplished athlete, Rogge was a Belgian rugby champion and represented his country. He was a 16-time Belgian national champion and a world champion in sailing. He also competed in sailing at three editions of the Olympic Games, in 1968, 1972 and 1976, in the Finn class.

After his career as an athlete, he became President of the Belgian and European Olympic Committees, and was elected President of the IOC in 2001. After his IOC Presidency, he also served as a Special Envoy for Youth, Refugees and Sport to the United Nations.