Thomas Bach praises Uganda's sporting spirit during farewell

International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach completed his two-day visit to Uganda on Thursday with fond memories of the country and a promise to return.

Speaking to guests during a farewell dinner at Sheraton Hotel on Wednesday night, Bach expressed his enthusiasm for even stronger IOC collaboration with Uganda.

“It was a successful and enjoyable visit to the Pearl of Africa. My delegation and I enjoyed every moment of it. It was great to feel the passion of the Ugandan people for sport and to meet so many Olympians, learning about their experiences during and after their sporting careers,” Bach said.

He praised the Uganda Olympic Committee (UOC) for their exceptional governance and support for athletes, as well as their engagement in supporting the United Nations Development Goals, from gender parity to health education.

IOC president Thomas Bach (right) serves food during his farewell dinner at Sheraton Hotel, October 23, 2024. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

“We also had very fruitful talks with the political authorities, particularly about our refugee program with the UNHCR and UOC. We had an engaging meeting with President Museveni and the First Lady, where the president promised to support two sports and committed to providing land for the UOC headquarters,” Bach stated.

Bach was excited to see President Museveni eager to learn about their programs with refugees and the Olympic Refugee Team. “Our initiative with Game Connect to put sport at the service of young refugees to help with their mental health is an innovative and creative approach that he appreciated very much. We also spoke about the neutrality of sport as exemplified at the Olympic Games in Paris.”

Government Chief Whip Hamson Obua, the chief guest at the function, told Bach that Uganda will remain a great sporting nation that will come to the Olympics to break and set new records. “Your visit to Uganda gives us hope and faith in the future because in the history of the IOC, you are the first to visit the country. By stepping foot on the soil of the Republic of Uganda, you have expanded our bragging rights as a sporting nation at the Olympic level,” Obua noted.

IOC president Thomas Bach and his wife Claudia honour the national anthems alongside the government chief whip Hamson Obua, sports minister Peter Ogwang and NCS Chairman Ambrose Tashobya during his farewell dinner at Sheraton Hotel, October 23, 2024. Photo by Michael Nsubuga

State Sports Minister Peter Ogwang thanked the UOC for making the country proud and said he would fast-track the land issue for a permanent UOC headquarters and ensure titled land for a national aquatic center is secured.

UOC president Donald Rukare noted that their relationship with the government and NCS had tremendously improved and that they would continue working within their mandates and territories, pulling together for one goal: the development of sport. He said Bach’s visit had given them a rejuvenated sense of purpose to continue working towards the development of sport. “We pledge as UOC to continue promoting Olympism and working on various projects to promote sport in the country,” Rukare stated.

NCS chairman Ambrose Tashobya thanked the IOC president for choosing Uganda as one of the five countries he visited in Africa.