Voting opens on poll to decide Best Male and Best Female Champions of last 100 years, as part of AIPS Centennial Celebration; poll open until July 26, the day of the Paris 2024 Olympics Opening Ceremony; special event to be held at UNESCO HQ in Paris on Tuesday, August 6…
The centenary of the Association Internationale de Presse Sportive (AIPS) is to be marked by a poll to choose the “Best Champions of the Century” since the organisation was formed.
The brainchild of French journalist Frantz Reichel and Belgian Victor Boin, both Olympic medallists, AIPS was founded in Paris a few days before the 1924 Olympics opened in the city.
“In 1924, our colleagues were very bright and looking towards the future and they created an association to defend our rights and our working conditions,” said AIPS President Gianni Merlo, in a video conference to mark the 100th anniversary hosted from the offices of the Italian sports newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport.
“I am a little bit emotional because to celebrate 100 years of our association is not so easy, especially in the home in which I have spent nearly half a century as a journalist,” Merlo admitted.
Polling will remain open until the opening day of the Paris 2024 Olympics and the results will be announced on Tuesday, August 6, at the Paris headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
“Please give your votes to the Best of the Best,” said AIPS Secretary and Treasurer Jura Osmec.
A number of leading athletes are expected to attend the event at which presentations will also be made to journalists who have covered at least 10 summer Olympic Games.
“This is to say thanks to all our colleagues that have worked so well in the past and at the same time to tell them to give a good example to the next generation,” Merlo insisted.
For more information, visit the AIPS website.
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