Thomas Bach, Chairman of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), was selected as the recipient of the 15th Seoul Peace Prize.
An official from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Sports Association said, "I know that Chairman Thomas Bach will visit Korea around October 27 to receive the Seoul Peace Prize."
Chairman Bach led the formation of a single team of North and South Korea in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics and participation in North Korea, and it is known that his achievements in contributing to peace on the Korean Peninsula, such as promoting the formation of a single team for the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics, were recognized and this time was decided as the winner.
Chairman Bach will be awarded a certificate, a plaque, and a prize money of $200,000 and about 233 million won in our money.
This is the second time the incumbent IOC chairman receives the Seoul Peace Prize, following the then-first International Olympic Committee Chairman Juan Antonio Samaranchi, the first winner in 1990.
Chairman Bach will visit Korea around October 27th, attend the Seoul Peace Awards, and then travel to Japan to meet with the new Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to discuss the issue of hosting the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which has been postponed to next year due to the Corona 19 outbreak.
The Seoul Peace Prize was established in 1990 to commemorate the spirit of the Seoul Olympics, which inspired an atmosphere of harmony and peace in East and West, and has been awarded biannually to people and organizations that have contributed to the settlement of human welfare and world peace.
The Seoul Peace Prize is awarded on a biennial basis, and was awarded to former U.S. Secretary of State George Schulz,'Medical Society without Borders', and former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, following the selection of the then International Olympic Committee Chairman Juan Antonio Samaranchi as the first winner in 1990. There is a bar.
In 2012, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was the first Korean to receive the award, German Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2014, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018.
(Photo = Getty Image Korea)