Jessica Fox has been elected as a new member of the International Olympic Committee Athletes’ Commission (IOC AC).
The Australian paddler, who secured double gold at Paris 2024 with victories in the women’s kayak and canoe events, has been elected for a term of eight years up to and including the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games in her home nation.
Fox is one of the four newly elected members, with USA track athlete Allyson Felix, German gymnast Kim Bui and tennis player Marcus Daniell of New Zealand also elected by the athletes competing at the Games in Paris.
“The new members will contribute to ensuring that the athletes’ voice remains at the heart of the Olympic Movement’s decisions,” the IOC said in a statement issued on Thursday.
The IOC Athletes’ Commission operates with the objective of representing all athletes and supporting them throughout their careers, on and off the field of play.
The Commission plays a central role within the Olympic Movement, representing the global athlete voice within the IOC and beyond. The Commission is composed of a maximum of 23 members, 12 of whom are directly chosen through elections during the Olympic Summer and Winter Games, with a maximum of 11 appointed members to ensure a balance between genders, regions and sports.
Twenty-nine athletes representing 15 sports, 29 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) and all five continents stood for election this year, reflecting a strong and diverse interest among athletes in representing their peers.
A total of 6,576 athletes, meaning a participation rate of more than 60 per cent, cast their vote during the Games period, the highest at a Summer Games edition since London 2012.
Fox is a four-time Olympian, winning a silver medal on her debut at London 2012, bronze at Rio 2016, gold and bronze at Tokyo 2020 and a double-gold in the French capital.
She was also a gold medallist at the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in 2010.
Fox will join the Commission upon the completion of Paris 2024 and the newly formed IOC AC will meet for the first time in Paris on August 9, when they will hold elections for the Chair and Vice-Chair positions.
The IOC AC Chair sits on the IOC Executive Board, representing athletes at the highest level within the IOC.
There are 15 IOC AC members in the IOC Session representing athletes, the same number of representatives from NOCs and International Federations (IFs).
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