Judy Simons joins ANOC Moderinzation Commission

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4: The Bermuda Olympic Association (BOA) today announced that its President, Mrs. Judy Simons, JP, has been named to the Working Commission for the Modernization of the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC).

Mrs. Simons will be one of 15 members of the Working Commission, which will begin setting out a strategy for the modernization of ANOC and its programmes at an inaugural meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland on 18 October.  She is the only woman to have been named to the Commission.

Having been a vocal advocate for modernization of the Olympic Solidarity Programme, under which National Olympic Committees receive funding from the International Olympic Committee, Mrs. Simons was personally appointed to the Commission by ANOC President, His Excellency Sheijk Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah.

She joins members representing 14 other National Olympic Committees from all continents.The composition of the Commission is as follows:

Mr. Kevan Gosper, Australia (Chairman)

Mr. Gunilla Lindberg, Sweden (ANOC Secretary General)
Mr. Marwan Maghur, Libya
Mr. Gilbert Grésenguet, Central African Republic
Mr. Julio Maglione, Uruguay
Mr. Ricardo Contreras, Mexico
Mr. Wei Jizhong, People’s Republic of China
Mr. Yong Sung Park, Republic of Korea
Mr. Alexander Kozlovsky, Russian Federation
Mr. Janez Kocijancic, Slovenia
Mr. Barry Maister, New Zealand
Mr. Ricardo Blas, Guam
Mr. Lawrence F. Probst III, United States of America
Mr. Michael Larry Romany, Trinidad and Tobago
Mrs. Judy Simons, JP, Bermuda

Mrs. Simons said, “I am excited to be part of the Working Commission for the Moderization of ANOC.  I see my role as being a strong advocate for NOCs and athletes from smaller jurisdictions.  In such jurisdictions—and Bermuda is clearly among them—athletes contend with higher costs of living and more limited access to local training facilities, which can lead to higher training costs.  These are factors that should be considered by ANOC as they look at reshaping their funding and development programmes.”