The Feb. 18 proceedings of the 139th Session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Beijing saw the election of a new vice-president and five new IOC members. Juan Antonio Samaranch Salisachs from Spain was elected as an IOC vice-president. His term will start on May 20, after the conclusion of the 139th IOC session. He is the only son of the former president of the IOC, Juan Antonio Samaranch, who was at the helm of the organization from 1980 to 2001. Additionally, for the first time in Olympic history, a UNHCR-recognized refugee, Yiech Pur Biel, was elected as an IOC member. Biel competed as a member of the IOC Refugee Olympic Team in Rio 2016 and was a team manager for the same team at the Tokyo 2020 Games. The other new IOC members include Slovak shooter and Olympic bronze medalist Danka Barteková, the president of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), David Lappartient from France, as well as the Olympians Martin Fourcade (France) and Frida Hansdotter (Sweden). Finally, Nicole Hoevertsz (Aruba) was re-elected as a member, while Dane Poul-Erik Hoyer informed the session that, for personal reasons, he would not be eligible for re-election. The elections on Feb. 18 bring the number of IOC members to 106.
