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Thomas Bach, who became honorary president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Monday, has been canonized more than once in recent years. Two weeks ago, a mass was held in his honor at the Église catholique romaine du Sacré-Cœur. Many members of the Olympic haute volée were invited, but by no means all accepted.
Three days ago, at the handover ceremony to his chosen successor, Kirsty Coventry, the IOC's propaganda department made one last powerful effort to elevate Bach to sainthood. The silly Coubertin moustache-wearer Jochen Färber, Chief of the Lausanne Office of the Olympic Channel, Bach's most submissive of many lackeys, once again acted as master of ceremonies. More than 100 members and honorary members clapped their hands raw. Many tears were shed.
Just 72 hours later, not everything, but quite a lot, had changed.
For a day and a half, around 70 IOC members held talks in Lausanne under the leadership of the new president and the former presidential candidates. On Wednesday and Thursday, the IOC Executive Board met for the first time under Coventry's leadership. And on Thursday afternoon, Coventry casually buried one of her predecessor's most controversial practices.
The completely non-transparent system of Olympic bids, which had been criticized even among IOC members since the dubious and scandalous awarding of the 2032 Games to Brisbane, will be paused.
