Phillip Walter Coles (20 July 1931 – 28 January 2023) was an Australian sports administrator and

canoe sprint Canoe sprint is a water sport in which athletes race canoes or kayaks on calm water. Overview Race categories vary by the number of athletes in the boat, the length of the course, and whether the boat is a canoe or kayak. Canoe sprints are so ...

er. Competing at the 1960 Rome, 1964 Tokyo, and 1968 Mexico City Olympics, he earned his best finish of ninth in the K-4 1000 m event at the Tokyo games, where he was also the team captain. Coles was a member of the

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...

from 1982 to 2011 and became an honorary member of that organisation in 2012 after reaching the retirement age of 80. He was the Australian Olympic Committee Secretary General from 1985 to 1993 and Director of International Relations from 1993 to 1999. He was a member of the executive board of the

Australian Olympic Committee Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

from 1973 to 2011, and was a founding member of the

Oceania National Olympic Committees The Oceania National Olympic Committees (acronym: ONOC) is an international organization that congregates the 17 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) of Oceania. It often assembles with other continental NOCs in the form of the Association of Nati ...

. He also served on the boards of other sporting organisations including Secretary General of the

International Triathlon Union World Triathlon, previously known as the International Triathlon Union (ITU), is the international governing body for the multi-sport disciplines of triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon and other nonstandard variations. World Triathlon hosts the top ...

from 1994 to 1999 and inaugural Chair of the

New South Wales Institute of Sport The New South Wales Institute of Sport (NSWIS) is a high performance sports training institute located in New South Wales, Australia. The New South Wales government agency provides world leading coaching, performance support and daily training ...

from 1995 to 2015. Coles was forced to stand down from the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games Organising Committee due to being one of twenty four IOC members implicated in the Salt Lake City 2002 bidding bribery controversy. Coles was sanctioned by the IOC as he received lavish hospitality from the bid committee. Coles was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in the 1983 Queen's Birthday Honours "for service to sport", was inducted into the

Sport Australia Hall of Fame The Sport Australia Hall of Fame was established on 10 December 1985 to recognise the achievements of Australian sportsmen and sportswomen. The inaugural induction included 120 members with Sir Don Bradman as the first inductee and Dawn Fraser th ...

in 1993, and received an

Australian Sports Medal The Australian Sports Medal is an award given to recognise achievements in Australian sport to commemorate Australian participation in major sporting events. Original recipients of the award included competitors, coaches, sports scientists, offi ...

in 2000. In 2012, Coles received the IOC

Olympic Order The Olympic Order, established in 1975, is the highest award of the Olympic Movement. It is awarded for particularly distinguished contributions to the Olympic Movement, i.e. recognition of efforts worthy of merit in the cause of sport. Traditi ...

for his distinguished contribution to the Olympic Movement. On his death, IOC President

Thomas Bach Thomas Bach (born 29 December 1953) is a German lawyer, former Olympic foil fencer and Olympic gold medalist, serving as the ninth and current president of the International Olympic Committee since 10 September 2013. He is also a former memb ...

remarked ""He was key to getting an Australian Olympic team to the Olympic Games Moscow 1980 against all requests for a boycott. It made him proud for the rest of his life to have led these athletes into the

Olympic Stadium ''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games. An Olympic stadium is the site of the opening and closing ceremonies. Many, though not all, of these venues actually contain the words ''Olympic Stadium'' as ...

. His love for the Olympic Games was at the centre of his life." Former AOC President John Coates stated "The athletes of Australia have lost one of their true champions and the AOC one of its strongest leaders. It was Phil who was key to our participation in Moscow 1980 and notwithstanding intense personal and public abuse. It was this participation by the Australian Olympic Team against the wishes of the then Prime Minister and Australian Government that once and for all emphasized the independence of the Australian Olympic Committee."

References

External links

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International Olympic Committee Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coles, Phil 1931 births 2023 deaths Australian male canoeists Australian sports executives and administrators Canoeists at the 1960 Summer Olympics Canoeists at the 1964 Summer Olympics Canoeists at the 1968 Summer Olympics Australian International Olympic Committee members Australian Olympic Committee administrators Members of the Order of Australia Recipients of the Australian Sports Medal Recipients of the Olympic Order Olympic canoeists for Australia Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees 20th-century Australian people Place of birth missing