IOC elects Germany’s Bach as new head

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Thomas Bach achieved a long-held dream on Tuesday as he was elected to the most powerful position in sport, president of the International Olympic Committee here.

The 59-year-old German — the first Olympic gold medallist to become president — won in the second round of voting by his fellow IOC members to beat his five male rivals bidding to succeed Jacques Rogge, who stepped down after 12 years in charge.
Bach polled 49 votes in the second round to achieve the majority, with only Puerto Rican banker Richard Carrion getting into double figures with a respectable 29. Athletics legend Sergey Bubka was humiliated as he garnered just four votes — although he made the second round which was not the case for Taiwan's Wu Ching-Kuo who was eliminated.
Bach, gold medallist with the West German team in the team foil event in the 1976 Olympics, had been the frontrunner throughout the campaign and had for years been seen as the man most likely to replace Rogge.
Bach, a lawyer by profession, is the ultimate insider having been a member since 1991 and has been vice-president three times while also heading up the Judicial Commission.
He has also been one of the leaders in fighting doping, calling for athletes to be suspended for four years instead of the two-year ban in place at the moment. It had not been all plain sailing for Bach during the campaign with German media in particular posing questions about his ability to be president.
Bach, who has fond memories of Buenos Aires as he and his team-mates came from 7-1 down to win the world foil title in 1975, looked to be in the eye of the storm in August.
An academic report — commissioned by him — was released alleging that, like their then East German neighbours, West Germany too had indulged in systematic doping of their athletes.