Hickey unopposed in EOC presidential elections

Ireland's Pat Hickey will be unopposed when he seeks a third term as president of the European Olympic Committees (EOC) in November while Sebastian Coe stands for election to the organisation's ruling executive committee.

Hickey, 68, has led the EOC since 2005 having previously been vice-president and secretary general while Coe, former chairman of London Games and current head of the British Olympic Association (BOA), made a late decision to stand for the executive board at the election during the EOC General Assembly in Rome Nov 22, reports Xinhua.

He is one of the 19 candidates chasing 12 places. Five of the candidates including Alejandro Blanco, Spanish Olympic Committee president and leader of Madrid's unsuccessful bid to host the 2020 Olympics, will be seeking re-election.

Others seeking election include Hasan Arat, vice-president of the National Olympic Committee of Turkey and chairman of Istanbul's unsuccessful bid to host the 2020 Games, Denis Masseglia, French National Olympic Committee head, and Michael Vesper, general director of the German Olympic Sports Confederation.

There will be a new vice-president with Russia's Alexandr Kozlovsky being replaced by Janez Kocijancic, head of the Olympic Committee of Slovenia, who is unopposed.