KUALA LUMPUR – Olympic Council of Malaysia president Tan Sri Mohamad Norza Zakaria is set to be elected vice-president for Southeast Asia at the upcoming general assembly of the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) in New Delhi, India, on September 8.
Norza’s unopposed candidacy marks a significant milestone, as he becomes the second Malaysian to hold this prestigious position in nearly four decades.
The OCA general assembly will conduct elections for its executive board for the term 2024-2028, including one president, five vice-presidents representing five zones, five members from each zone of the opposite gender to their respective vice-presidents, and two representatives from the OCA Athletes Committee.
Additionally, 15 chairs of the statutory standing committees will be elected.
Norza, nominated by Malaysia on July 12, received unanimous support from the 10 other member National Olympic Committees in Southeast Asia – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam.
As the sole candidate, Norza’s election is assured, continuing Malaysia’s legacy in the OCA leadership.
“I am humbled and honoured to be nominated as the sole candidate for the position of OCA vice-president for the Southeast Asia Zone.
“I am equally proud to be the second person from Malaysia, after Tan Sri Hamzah (Abu Samah), to be elected OCA vice-president after nearly four decades,” he said in a statement last night.
Norza expressed gratitude to his Southeast Asian colleagues for their trust and pledged to promote excellence and solidarity within the Olympic Movement.
Norza’s extensive involvement in the Olympic Movement within the OCA includes serving on the OCA International Relations Committee (2019-2023), chairing the OCA Sports for All Committee (2023) and participating in the OCA Coordination Committee for the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya.
The OCA Election Committee has also confirmed that OCA acting president Randhir Singh is the sole eligible candidate for the presidential election, supported by 27 member National Olympic Committees of OCA.
Other vice-presidential candidates include Timothy Fok (Hong Kong) and Battushig Batbold (Mongolia) for East Asia, Prince Jigyel Wangchuck (Bhutan) and Maxwell de Silva (Sri Lanka) for South Asia, Otabek Umarov (Uzbekistan) and Sadyr Mamytov (Kyrgyzstan) for the Central Zone, and Thani Al Kuwari (Qatar) for West Asia. – July 24, 2024