G20 National Olympic Committees virtual conference opens

Prince Abdul Aziz bin Turki Al-Faisal will chair the summit-level meeting in Riyadh. (SPA)
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Updated 17 November 2020
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G20 National Olympic Committees virtual conference opens

  • The conference will discuss opportunities and challenges facing the Olympic movement and the global sports sector in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic

JEDDAH: The conference of National Olympic Committees (NOC) of the G20 countries will take place in Riyadh on Tuesday with the support of the Saudi Secretariat of the G20 and the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee.

Prince Abdul Aziz bin Turki Al-Faisal will chair the summit-level meeting dubbed “The Olympic movement during and after the COVID-19 pandemic” as part of a program of international conferences held on the sidelines of the Saudi presidency of the G20 this year.

The conference will discuss opportunities and challenges facing the Olympic movement and the global sports sector in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The conference also aims to shed light on the important role that the movement plays in helping the international community to recover socially, economically and healthwise from the pandemic.

Leading the keynote speakers at the virtual conference is the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, as honorary chair of the conference. Other speakers are IOC board member, Princess Reema bint Bandar Al-Saud; member of the board of directors of the Japanese Olympic Committee, Momii Keiko; president of the Italian Olympic Committee, Giovanni Malago; Dr. Tedros Adhanom, director general of the World Health Organization (WHO); Robin Mitchell, president of the Association of National Olympic Committees; Witold Banka, president of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA); James Macleod, director of Olympic Solidarity and NOC Relations; chairman of the Y20 Youth Engagement Group, Othman Al-Muammar; and vice president of the U20 Urban Community Engagement Group, Hussam Al-Qurashi.

The Saudi Olympic committee invited all National Olympic Committees of the G20 countries, in addition to the NOCs of countries invited for the G20 summit — UAE, Jordan, Spain, Rwanda, Singapore, Switzerland and Vietnam. Representatives from WHO, international federations and continental Olympic committees will also attend.


Liverpool’s Wirtz will score many more after Wolves winner, says Slot

Updated 29 December 2025
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Liverpool’s Wirtz will score many more after Wolves winner, says Slot

  • Liverpool signed Florian Wirtz in June for a reported fee of £100 million, with a further £16 million in potential bonuses
  • The 22-year-old had failed to find the net in more than 20 appearances for Liverpool before scoring the ‌ winner in Saturday’s ‌ match

Florian Wirtz is beginning to find his feet at Liverpool and will keep getting better, manager Arne Slot said after the German midfielder scored his first ​goal for the Premier League champions in their 2-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Liverpool signed Wirtz in June for a reported fee of 100 million pounds ($135 million), with a further 16 million pounds in potential bonuses.
The 22-year-old had failed to find the net in more than 20 appearances for Liverpool before scoring the ‌winner in Saturday’s ‌match, and Slot said his ‌performances ⁠had ​been ‌undervalued due to football’s obsession with statistics.
“I’m quite sure it was a relief for him. This I could see after his reaction after he scored the goal – and the same I saw with his teammates. I think they were really happy for him,” Slot told reporters.
“In football – rightly ⁠so, maybe – we mainly get judged on results, and individuals mainly ‌get judged on goals and assists. ‍Sometimes we tend to forget ‍what else there is to do during a ‍game.”
The Dutch manager called on Wirtz to keep going after ending his drought.
“He’s had multiple good games for us but I also feel he gets better and better every single ​game he is playing for us. He gets fitter and fitter and was getting closer and ⁠closer to his first goal,” he added.
“Then it was not a surprise to me that he scored one today, but he would probably be the first one to understand that one goal is not enough.
“He will score many more goals for us than only this one, but I also liked his performance during large parts of the game today. I think he was special in a lot of moments.”
Liverpool, fourth in the standings, next host ‌16th-placed Leeds United in a league match on January 1.