The 4th annual IOC youth summit held this weekend from 6 to 8 September has been like no other. Fifty-three IOC young leaders, formerly known as IOC young change makers, came together to put their creativity to the test as part of the first ever IOC “createathon” for the forthcoming winter Youth Olympic Games that open in the Olympic capital of Lausanne in exactly four months’ time.

Based on a digital hackathon – a design-sprint usually involving computer programmers – the “createathon” set 10 teams of IOC Young Leaders the task of creating an interactive and immersive IOC space for Lausanne 2020, where an estimated 100,000 fans are expected to pass through. 

Over eight hours, the IOC Young Leaders worked in true Olympic collaboration spirit within their respective teams to squeeze out their very best ideas, all of which included fun and immersive concepts which combined sport and culture. The concepts all focused around living the Olympic Values daily. They were supported by a group of coaches from local start-ups to Ted-Ex coaches. and a pool of over 20 experts, including storytellers, virtual reality specialists, social media experts, architects, designers and many more. 

The teams had three minutes to pitch to a judging panel made up of the experts and headed by Lausanne 2020 President Virginie Faivre, who reviewed the proposal based on delivery, feasibility and creativity. 

The top three teams were invited to share their concepts with the IOC President, Thomas Bach, on the final day of the Summit. Following which, the President held a Q&A with all of the IOC Young Leaders. 

“The IOC Youth Summit is always a highlight of the year, as it is very inspirational to see young creative people so committed to the Olympic Values. They have developed a lot over the years and they now play an even more important role in the IOC decision making process. They give us inspiration in shaping the future of the Olympic Games and the Olympic Movement”, said President Bach who has appointed 16 IOC Young Leaders to the IOC Commissions 2019 bringing the number up from 7 in 2018.

Virginie Faivre, President of the Lausanne 2020 Organising Committee, commented: “We have put young people at the heart of Lausanne 2020 at every step to create iconic elements such as our mascot, medal, song and visual identity. I am delighted we can pool the diverse imaginations of the IOC Young Leaders. Their ideas are truly inspiring.”

Previously known as the Young Change-Makers Programme, the IOC Young Leaders Programme was officially renamed during the kick off of this IOC Youth Summit, to reflect the increasingly important role that these inspiring young people are playing at the heart of the Olympic Movement. Supported by IOC seed funding of CHF 5,000, they are successfully using sport to create a better world and have collectively established over 50 grassroots projects around the world impacting thousands in their communities. Since 2017.

For the fourth year running, the IOC is delighted to welcome the support of TOP Partner Panasonic, whose generosity has made it possible to further develop the IOC Young Leaders Programme.

(Source: Olympic.org)