Background
Bach, Thomas was born on December 29, 1953 in Würzburg, Germany.
International Olympic Committee Vice President
Bach, Thomas was born on December 29, 1953 in Würzburg, Germany.
Degree in law, Universität Würzburg, Germany.
Bach is a former fencer of the Fencing-Club Tauberbischofsheim. Thomas Bach served as the president of the Deutscher Olympischer Sportbund (DOSB) prior to becoming the International Olympic Committee President. In addition he also resigned as the head of Ghorfa Arab-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Bach will however continue to serve as the head of Michael Weinig AG Company, a company in the industrial woodworking machinery industry that has its headquarters in Bach"s hometown of Tauberbischofsheim, Germany Bach headed Munich"s bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics.
In the host city election, Munich secured 25 votes as Pyeongchang was elected as host city with 63 votes. On 9 May 2013, Bach confirmed that he would run for President of the International Olympic Committee.
Bach was elected to an eight-year term as International Olympic Committee President at the 125th International Olympic Committee Session in Buenos Aires on 10 September 2013. He secured 49 votes in the final round of voting, giving him the majority needed to be elected.
He succeeds Jacques Rogge who served as International Olympic Committee President from 2001 to 2013.
Bach will be eligible to run for one additional four-year term at the 133rd International Olympic Committee Session in 2021 until 2025. Bach"s successful election came against five other candidates, Sergey Bubka, Richard Carrión, Ng Ser Miang, Denis Oswald and Wu Ching-Kuo. The result of the election was as follows: Following his election as International Olympic Committee President, Bach stated that he wished to change the Olympic bidding process and make sustainable development a priority.
He stated that he feels that the current bidding process asks "too much, too early".
The first bidding process he will preside over as President will be the bidding process for the 2022 Winter Olympics. Bids were due in November 2013 and the host city will be elected at the 128th International Olympic Committee Session in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in July 2015.
Thomas Bach officially moved into the International Olympic Committee Presidential office at the International Olympic Committee headquarters in Lausanne on 17 September 2013, a week after being elected President. He speaks fluent French, English, Spanish and German.
He is the ninth and current president of the International Olympic Committee and member of the DOSB executive board. He resigned as the head of DOSB on 16 September 2013, having served as president since 2006, was replaced by Alfons Hörmann, and remained a member of the DOSB executive board.
Married Claudia Kargl.