IOC, replying to National Sports Council (NSC) Member Secretary Yuvaraj Lama’s letter dated October 12, sent a letter to Lama on Monday and reiterated its position.[break]
Lama had sent a letter to IOC last month informing it about the existence of two NOCs in the country. He also mentioned about the October 4, 2010 verdict of the Supreme Court of Nepal that had given a legitimate status to NOC headed by Rukma Shamsher Rana.
According an NSC source, IOC’s National Olympic Committee’s Relations Director Pere Miro and Olympic Council of Asia’s (OCA) Director General and Technical Director Husain Al-Musallam sent the letter that reads “there is only one National Olympic Committee in Nepal which is recognized by the IOC (and OCA) and which is currently presided over by Dhruba Bahadur Pradhan, following the last NOC Elective General Assembly which took place on April 2 in presence of IOC and OCA representatives.”
Pradhan-led NOC has been courting controversies after the Supreme Court verdict of October 4, 2010, which not only barred it from operating bank accounts but also questioned its legitimacy and allowed rival NOC body-led by Rukma Samsher Rana to carry out their activities.
However, IOC has made its stance clear on the issue through Monday’s letter that no other entity than the IOC is entitled to recognize a national olympic committee. IOC has said that it is the sole entity entitled to recognize a national olympic committee in accordance with the Olympic Charter.
“The so-called other NOC which you mentioned in your letter has no authority to designate itself as a NOC and to operate as such within your country. Rana, as a former president of the NOC, should be very well aware of these fundamental rules of the Olympic Movement and should immediately stop any action against the Olympic Charter,” the source quoted the letter from IOC and OCA.
IOC has also said that the Olympic properties such as the Olympic rings and the word Olympic, belong exclusively to the IOC.
IOC has also reiterated that only those National Olympic Committees duly recognized by the IOC can participate in the Olympic Games and the same goes for the participation in all games that are under the jurisdiction of the OCA.
In the letter, IOC and OCA have recommended that the NOC and the relevant government authorities in the country can work closely together in order to develop relations on good terms and complementary actions for the benefit of sports and the athletes in the country.
IOC has asked for the support of NSC to avoid any unnecessary disputes that would disrupt the preparation of the athletes and the delegation of the NOC in the upcoming London Olympics.
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