MILAN (AP) — Athletes at the Milan Cortina Winter Games elected a South Korean bobsled pilot and an Estonian biathlete on Thursday to represent them at the International Olympic Committee.
The eight-year terms for Yunjong Won and Johanna Talihärm will include voting with IOC members to pick a host for the 2036 Summer Games.
Won topped an 11-candidate ballot with 1,176 votes and Talihärm took the second IOC place with 983 votes. The IOC said 2,393 votes were cast, or 83.4% of the eligible athletes at the Winter Games.
The candidates who failed to win election included former Olympic champions Chinese figure skater Cong Han, Canadian ski cross racer Marielle Thompson and Ukrainian aerials skier Oleksandr Abramenko. Thompson placed third with 683 votes.
The 40-year-old Won piloted a four-man bobsled crew to take silver at their home 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics. He also competed at Sochi in 2014 and Beijing in 2022.
The 32-year-old Talihärm also competed at each of the past three Winter Games editions.
On the current list of 107-strong IOC membership, they will replace Finland ice hockey player Emma Terho and Norwegian cross-country skier Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen whose eight-year terms expire Sunday. Athletes have a quota of 15 elected member places at the IOC.
Terho has represented athletes on the IOC Executive Board since 2021. Her predecessor on the board was Kirsty Coventry, who is now IOC president.
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Sat, 2/28, 1-4 pm Congregational Church, San Mateo and Sun, 3/1, 10am-noon, First Presbyteri… Read moreHEAR NATIONAL CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION - AND DEMOCRACY - ADVOCATE REV. JIM ANTAL IN SAN MATEO AND PALO ALTO
With playing described as “stylish and full of fire,” Ensemble Mirable has captivated listen… Read moreEnsemble Mirable: Baroque Masterpieces on period instruments
“Powerful, moving, and exhilarating” Read moreSongs For A New World
Exclusive film screening in San Mateo Read moreA LITTLE FELLOW: THE LEGACY OF A.P.GIANNINI
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.