Sporting legends to support young athletes at Lillehammer 2016

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today announced the list of 15 Athlete Role Models (ARMs) who will support the young athletes going to the 2nd Winter Youth Olympic Games from 12 to 21 February 2016 in Lillehammer, Norway.

Selected by the Winter International Federations whose sports will be featured at Lillehammer 2016, the list includes many legendary names from the world of sport, including Olympic and world champions. In Lillehammer, they will play a key role in supporting, mentoring and offering advice to the 1,100 young athletes who will be participating in the Games.

The ARMs will be accessible to the athletes in the Youth Olympic Village and during a series of educational activities and workshops within the Learn & Share Programme. These activities will focus on areas such as skills development, how to lead healthy lifestyles, environment and social responsibility, and Olympism.

The ARMs will be behind the scenes during competition and will also be available for informal chats in a specially created lounge that will be open to all participants. The athletes can also learn valuable lessons from the ARMs during “Chat with Champions” sessions – a Q&A format to promote discussion with the young athletes. Fans of the YOG, meanwhile, will have the opportunity to put their questions directly to the ARMs during informal chat sessions on the IOC’s social media channels.

The main goal behind the ARM Programme is to allow the ARMs to share their experiences and inspire the athletes to be the best they can be both on and off the field of play.

Angela Ruggiero, Chair of the IOC Coordination Commission and Olympic champion in ice hockey, said: “The Athlete Role Models are giving back to sport by supporting the next generation of young athletes, both on and off the field of play. The ARMs have a wealth of knowledge to share with the young athletes garnered from their successful careers as sportsmen and women, and will be a huge support and comfort to the young athletes, many of whom will be experiencing their first multi-sport international competition.”

Also in attendance will be the IOC Athletes’ Commission, which will play a key role in the educational activities and workshops for athletes off the field of play.

For more information on the Youth Olympic Games, please visit: http://www.olympic.org/yog.

Table Tennis Legends Announced as 2014 Youth Olympic Games Athlete Role Models

Jörgen PERSSON (SWE) and WANG Liqin (CHN) have been announced as the Table Tennis Athlete Role Models (ARMs) who will attend the 2nd Summer Youth Olympic Games (YOG) from 16 to 28 August in Nanjing, China.

Between them, these two superstars of table tennis have won everything there is to win. PERSSON has 5 World Championship medals to his name, and WANG has won a staggering 11 World Championships gold and two Olympic gold medals in an extraordinary career.

PERSSON, who is one of three men to have played in every Olympic table tennis event since its debut in 1988 stated: “It is special to be appointed as the Table Tennis role model for the Youth Olympic Games. I am looking forward to the Youth Olympic Games and to work along side with WANG Liqin who is a good friend of mine and of the all-time greats.”

Jörgen PERSSON (SWE) and WANG Liqin (CHN) will be reunited again as Athlete Role Models in Nanjing.

In Nanjing, PERSSON and WANG, who played off for the bronze medal at the 2008 Bejing Olympics which WANG won, will play a key role in supporting, mentoring and offering advice to the young Table Tennis players who will be participating in the Games.

ITTF Deputy CEO responsible for Development & Education Glenn TEPPER stated: “ITTF is extremely pleased to have Jörgen PERSSON and WANG Liqin as Athlete Role Models, with both being of the highest possible caliber, holding multiple World and Olympic titles between them. Both will also be involved in the ITTF “Road to Nanjing” Training Camp in Shanghai China in June open to YOG qualified athletes and “Road to Nanjing” Scholarships holders so will be able to inspire our young athletes even before YOG commences, and ongoing rapport will be well established prior to YOG.”

Both PERSSON and WANG will be accessible to the athletes both in the Youth Olympic Village and during a series of educational activities and workshops that will focus on areas such as skills development, how to lead healthy lifestyles, environment and social responsibility and Olympism.

The main goal behind making the ARMs as accessible as possible is so they can share their experiences and inspire the young athletes to be the best they can be both on and off the field of play. The Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games Table Tennis event will be held at Wutaishan Sport Complex on 17-28 August 2014.

The Table Tennis event will include 32 boys and 32 girls who will fight it out for 3 gold medals: boys’ singles, girls’ singles and the mixed teams event, which consists of one boy and one girl who have qualified for the singles event.