Wu Ching-kuo, president of the International Boxing Association (AIBA), became the first ROC national elected to the International Olympic Committee executive board May 23.
Wu, 66, defeated Pat McQuaid, president of the International Cycling Union, garnering 20 of the 28 votes cast by federation chairs at the Association of Summer Olympic Federations’ meeting in Quebec City, according to his liaison office.
“I will continue to promote Olympic activities and the ROC’s sports interests on the international stage,” Wu said.
His election to the IOC executive board is an indication of the high level of trust most top international sporting officials have in Wu’s abilities and rich experience, his office said.
Earlier in his career, Wu also made history by becoming the first ROC citizen to hold the top spot in an international sporting association when he assumed the AIBA presidency.
Chen Kuo-yi, secretary-general of the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee, said recently that Wu’s election to the executive board would help in efforts to have baseball and softball reinstated as official Olympic sports.
Wu is currently the 14th longest serving member on the 106-member IOC, being sworn in to the position in 1988. (SB-THN)