- IOC's new president Kirsty Coventry has set up a working group dedicated to women's sport
- It is one of several initiatives that form part of a wider pledge "to safeguard the female category"
- The women's sport working group is among four panels announced by the IOC
Kirsty Coventry, the IOC's first woman president, has brought in a working group focused on women's sport as part of her strategy to protect the female category.
The group is one of four panels charged with looking at the Olympic programme, the Youth Olympic Games' future, and the organisation's commercial partnerships and marketing.
While the names of the members on the other three groups have been made public, the names of those in the women's sport group have not been released. "The names of working group members will be kept confidential at this stage to ensure the integrity of the group and their work," the IOC stated on Sept. 5.
The group, comprising experts and members of international federations (IFs), will discuss means to safeguard the female category. Kirsty made the announcement upon taking office on June 23.
After her inaugural executive board meeting, Kirsty set forth a "Fit for the Future" program, with women's sport at its core. According to her, the IOC is intent on being proactive by coordinating federations and experts and accepting that solutions can be different across sports.
She held out the hope that the working group could come to a "consensus" on policy. "Protecting the women's category is important, as is fairness and evidence-led decision-making," Coventry stated.
The IOC is also under further pressure after a US executive order limiting participation of transgender athletes in women's sports, which may influence taking part in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Kirsty further stated that the four working groups "will enable us to meet deadlines and provide technical expertise for these intricate discussions while making changes where needed to make the Movement stronger."
Of the three panels whose members have so far been announced, the Olympic programme panel consists of some of the medalists, including ex-middle-distance runner Sebastian Coe, who is the current head of World Athletics; ex-canoeing champion Tony Estanguet, who was once the head of the Paris Olympic organising committee; and American sprinter Allyson Felix.
The size and pertinence of the Games, the inclusion of new sports, the possibility of crossover between summer and winter sports, and scheduling issues will be scrutinized by this panel.
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