Pat Hickey, the president of the Olympic Council of Ireland, is one of seven International Olympic Committee (IOC) members battling for two vacant seats on the prestigious executive board it was confirmed yesterday.
The other six contestants are Vitaly Smirnov (Russia), Franco Carraro (Italy), Lambis Nikolaou (Greece), Sam Ramsamy (South Africa), Gunilla Lindberg (Sweden) and Guy Drut (France).
Only Lindberg looks sure of securing a seat for herself on the board. IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch has twice told members over the past 48 hours that more women must be given positions of authority within the IOC. So far there is only one women on the currently 11-strong board, American Anita De-Frantz.
The second seat is expected to be a battle between Hickey, Ramsamy and Carraro. IOC members consider Smirnov, Nikolaou and Drut as outsiders.
The vacant seat for vice-president, caused by the departure of marketing chief Dick Pound, whose four-year mandate is up, is a two-man battle between Germany's Thomas Bach and Japan's Chiharu Igaya. Both are executive board members and the loser will lose his seat.
IOC sources have Bach firmly in front. Although Bach denies he is planning to run for IOC presidency when Samaranch stands down next year, he is expected to throw his hat into the ring if he wins the vice-president spot.
