A Look Into the Org Chart of the International Olympic Committee

There was a lot of doubt around the viability of the 2020 Olympic Games and many questioned whether or not the human rights violations, bidding scandals and widespread cheating, on top of the global pandemic, made it worth having the Olympics altogether.

Yet somehow the International Olympic Committee (IOC), a governing body of the Olympic movement, made up of corporate executives, veteran Olympic athletes and even royalty, has made the Tokyo 2020 Olympics happen -- albeit in 2021.

The Org has taken a look into the IOC and identified some of the key executive members who oversee all aspects of the Olympic Games.

Thomas Bach - The President

Former Olympic gold medalist in fencing Thomas Bach has firmly held on to his position as the President of the IOC since he was elected into the role in 2013. Since taking on the President role, Bach’s job has not been smooth sailing, with him having to deal with the Russian doping scandal and the coronavirus pandemic. A lawyer by profession, Bach has a bachelor’s and Ph.D. from the University of Wurzburg.

Bach does not have the best reputation, with many criticizing him for prioritizing revenues over the safety of athletes and citizens. He has done little to help his image and recently made the mistake of referring to the Japanese people as “Chinese” during a news conference.

Emre Omer Kurtoglu-Jolidon - The person holding the purse strings

The IOC is entirely privately funded through commercial partnerships in advertising, sponsorships and broadcasting rights. According to information available on LinkedIn, managing the IOC’s finances is Emre Omer Kurtoglu-Jolidon.

An experienced accountant, Kurtoglu-Jolidon graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Collège Champittet and a Master’s in Business from the University of Lausanne. He has previously worked at PwC and was a VP of Finance at Luxury Goods & Jewelry at Movado Group, before he became VP of Finance and Administration at the IOC Television and Marketing Services SA. The Swiss native became CFO of the IOC in October 2019.

Lana Haddad - The strategy and planning developer

Born in Iraq and now residing in the United Kingdom is the IOC’s COO, Lana Haddad. Haddad has over two decades of experience serving in various leadership positions at multinational consumer goods corporation Procter & Gamble. She has served as the Financial Analysis Capability Building Executive for EMEA and the Global Finance & Accounting Head for Cosmetics International Operations. She has a bachelor’s and Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Swansea University. Haddad is also a fully qualified Chartered Accountant and, before becoming COO, was Kurtoglu-Jolidon’s predecessor.

Ilario Corna - The information officer

Ilario Corna succeeded Gerry Pennell in the CIO position in late 2020. Having previously worked on Olympic-related projects in his career, Corna was already familiar with the ins and outs of the information and technology services related to the international multi-sport event.

A computer science graduate from Brock University, Corna was the Digital Services Senior Manager for the Baku 2015 European Games. Over his career, he has served at large companies including Discovery, where he was the SVP of Global D2C; Eurosport, where he was SVP of Digital Platform Architecture; and Technology and Swisscom, where he was the EVP of TV and Smart Products.

Aldric Ludescher - The security officer

Aldric Ludescher is the CSO at the IOC, overseeing all aspects of the Olympic Games security, including diplomatic, corporate and informational security. Ludescher was previously been a part of the Special Operations Forces and worked as an Intelligence Officer for NATO. In 2011 he became a consultant with Controlled Risks, where he worked on projects operating in the Middle East and Africa.

Most recently, he was the Head of Research Department and a lecturer for security management at FH Campus Wien, where he obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He currently sits as a member of the International Security Management Association and is a Security Expert for Ethics Evaluations for the European Commission.

Paquerette Girard Zappelli - The ethics officer

With cheating an increasing concern at the Olympic Games, Paquerette Girard Zappelli’s role as Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer of the IOC is an extremely crucial one. Zappelli oversees the code of conduct for cities bidding for the Olympic Games and reviews all ethics cases in the IOC.

Previously a judge on the Tribunal de grande instance (first instance court) of France, Zappelli has made her way through the legal world. Zappelli was delegated to France’s Ministry of Justice from 1985 to 1992, and the country’s Supreme Court from 1992-2002. She is a graduate of the National School of Magistrates in France.