Lebanon could miss Olympics amid rival national committees

BEIRUT — A few weeks after the delayed elections of two presidents from the same Lebanese Olympic Committee (COL), the sports saga continues.

On May 14, ahead of an electing assembly announced for May 16, Jihad Salameh was elected president of the COL in elections that did not include all the federation presidents or executive committee members. The result of this May 14 vote is not recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), nor by the Asian Olympic Committee (AOC). On May 16, the electing assembly reelected Pierre Jalkh.

Recognized by the IOC and the AOC through an official letter dated May 22, this result is contested by the voters of the May 14 committee. Both parties also contest each other's legitimacy through the recognition of certain sports federations and therefore their right to vote. Sporting Lebanon thus runs the risk of not being represented in the upcoming Olympic Games due to having two national Olympic committees.

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On May 30, in an official statement, the Minister of Youth and Sports, Noura Bayrakdarian, stated that "the May 14 session is valid" while "the committee elected on May 16 does not meet legal conditions." The minister continued by officially recognizing the committee led by Salameh. On June 3, this committee thanked Lebanese authorities in a statement for recognizing their result and declared undertaking legal measures to recover the COL's premises, assets, and bank accounts. The text also indicates that the committee led by Pierre Jalkh, "as well as all decisions and correspondences emanating from this committee are considered illegitimate, illegal, void, and with no effect."

Lebanon thus has two national Olympic committees: the first, from May 14, presided by Salameh, is recognized by Lebanese authorities; the second, from May 16, presided by Jalkh, is recognized internationally by the IOC and AOC. Federations that voted on May 14 could furthermore be sanctioned by the IOC through suspension from the Olympic Games, such as the basketball federation. If the two elected committees do not end up agreeing, "Lebanon could be deprived of the Olympic Games," a former COL member had already warned in May.