IOC 136th Session Elects HRH Princess Reema Bint Bandar As An IOC Member
Press Release
In another remarkable achievement for Saudi women and for Saudi sports as whole, HRH Princess Reema Bint Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was elected among the newest members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
The 136th IOC session chaired by President Dr. Thomas Bach was held virtually on Friday, and saw the vote cast for Princess Reema to be the first Saudi women to hold this post.
Princess Reema is the third Saudi to hold this position after the late HRH Prince Faisal bin Fahd bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (1983-1999), and HRH Prince Nawwaf bin Faisal bin Fahd Al Saud (2001-2014).
Commenting on her new position, HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal, President of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee (SAOC) thanked the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and the Crown Prince HRH Prince Muhammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz for their continued support to all sports, both internally and externally. He congratulated HRH Princess Reema on her election, saying that it confirms the ability of Saudi sports cadres to be present on an international level in organizations such as the IOC, which is the highest sporting authority in the world. Where she, along with her colleagues can work towards upholding Olympic values and promoting Olympism in Saudi Arabia and the world.
HRH Princess Reema stated that she was honored to be chosen for this position, noting that her victory came thanks to the generous support that she found from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and HRH the Minister of Sports Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal.
“It has been an honor to be able to serve my community and continuing to serve them through sports is unmatched. Sports is a means of connection and engagement, and it is the true global language.” She added.
HRH Princess Reema won the membership of the committee alongside Mr. Sebastian Coe, Maria de la Caridad, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, and Battushig Batbold.
During her career, HRH Princess Reema became one of the most prominent Saudi sports personalities. She was Deputy for Women Affairs at the General Sports Authority, now Ministry of Sports (2016-2017), Deputy of Planning and Development at the General Sports Authority, now Ministry of Sports (2017-2019), President of the Saudi Mass Participation Federation, now named Sports For All Federation(2017-2019), and is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee since 2017, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Sports for All Federation from 2019 until present.