19 May 2025 – In an emotional and very personal moment, the Oceanian National Olympic Committees (ONOC) honoured outgoing IOC President Thomas Bach during the XLV ONOC General Assembly in Guam. While ONOC staff sang him a farewell song rooted in local island culture, he was presented with three symbolic gifts special to the regions ONOC is made up of: a turtle for Micronesia, a manta ray for Polynesia and a dolphin for Melanesia.
“Isa Lei, the purple shadow falling, Sad the morrow will dawn upon my sorrow; O, forget not, when you’re far away, Precious moments from Oceania,” the chorus of the song said.
Earlier, the IOC President’s speech was followed by standing ovations. “Every visit to Oceania is a personal highlight for me. I am really privileged that I have been welcomed by you so many times. I enjoyed every minute of it,” he said. “Throughout all these years, I have been fortunate to experience your unity, your community spirit, your solidarity and your friendship first hand. We all share our commitment and passion for our beloved Olympic Movement. We all want to see it shining even brighter in the future. This is why today I ask you to extend this same spirit and support to my successor, the IOC President-elect, Mrs Kirsty Coventry.”
Bach used the opportunity to honour IOC Member and outgoing ONOC President Dr Robin Mitchell: “Robin, your leadership has left an enduring mark on the Olympic Movement. It is a credit to you, and to ONOC, that Oceania now plays such an influential role on the global stage. For this, I offer you my warmest congratulations and deepest thanks — for your service to sport, to the athletes of Oceania and the world, and to the Olympic values,” the IOC President said.
He awarded Mitchell the IOC President’s trophy. “This trophy is called ‘The Sky is the Limit’,” Bach explained: “It could not be more appropriate, because under your leadership, dear Robin, only the sky was the limit. Like the vast and open Pacific sky above your island homes, your vision was always broad, your ambitions always high, and your commitment always deep. Through your lifelong dedication — to athletes, to colleagues, to the values we all share — you have quietly and steadily shown what it means to serve something greater than oneself. In doing so, you have strengthened the Olympic Movement and made a lasting difference to countless lives, across Oceania and around the world. Thank you, dear Robin, from the bottom of my heart.”
The delegates elected IOC Member Baklai Temengil as their new President, and Bach was one of the first to congratulate Temengil on her election. “Good luck for your new task,” he said.
During the General Assembly, Olympic bronze medallist and three-time world champion in cycling, Annette Edmondson from Australia, was awarded the IOC Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Award for Oceania. IOC President Bach presented the award to her. In his laudatory speech, IOC Member Ian Chesterman said: “Annette Edmondson is a leading advocate for gender equality and inclusion in sport, working to elevate opportunities for women in professional cycling.”
Bach had been welcomed to the island by Governor Lou Leon Guerrero, with whom he discussed the role of sport as important enabler for the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the success of the athletes from Guam at the Olympic Games Paris 2024, where eight athletes from the small NOC competed.
The Governor congratulated the IOC President on his work during the 12 years of his tenure. “You left incredible marks in the IOC,” she said.
