Henry Edmund Olufemi Adefope (15 March 1926 – 11 March 2012) was a Nigerian Army major general who served as

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

and as 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 1985 to 2006 and an honorary member of the International Olympic Committee since 2007.

Early life and education

Henry Adefope was born on 15 March 1926 in

Kaduna Kaduna is the capital city of Kaduna State, and the former political capital of Northern Region, Nigeria, Northern Nigeria. It is located in north-western Nigeria, on the Kaduna River. It is a trade Centre and a major transportation hub as the ...

, Nigeria to Alice Adefope and Chief Adefope. He was educated at

CMS Grammar School, Lagos The CMS Grammar School in Bariga, a suburb of Lagos in Lagos State, is the oldest secondary school in Nigeria, founded on 6 June 1859 by the Church Missionary Society. For decades it was the main source of African clergymen and administrators in ...

and Glasgow University, graduating in General medicine in 1952. He worked as a doctor from 1953 to 1963 and was then commissioned into the Nigerian Army in 1963.

Career

He rose to the rank of

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

and served as Director of Medical Services. From 1975 to 1978 he served as Minister of Labour and from 1978 to 1979 served as Minister of Foreign Affairs, both cabinet portfolios under the military administration of General

Olusegun Obasanjo Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo, , ( ; yo, Olúṣẹ́gun Ọbásanjọ́ ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian political and military leader who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its pres ...

. Adefope also served in a variety of positions in sports administration, including terms as the President of the Nigerian Olympic Committee from 1967 to 1976 and as Vice-President of the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

Federation from 1974 to 1982. In 1985 he was elected to the IOC. While with the IOC, he has been a member of the commissions that selected the host cities for the

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

and

2004 Summer Olympic Games The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

. He was investigated, but exonerated in regards to the

2002 Winter Olympic bid scandal The 2002 Olympic Winter Games bid scandal was a scandal involving allegations of bribery used to win the rights to host the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Prior to its successful bid in 1995, the city had attempted fo ...

. He became an IOC Honorary Member in 2006.

Family

Adefope was a father, grandfather and great-grandfather. His children include Femi Adefope, Dotun Okojie, Folake Nedd, Ronke Eso, Seyi Adefope, Niyi Adefope and Toyin Adeyeye.

Death

Henry Adefope died on 11 March 2012 at the age of 85, four days shy of his 86th birthday.

References

External links

IOC member profile
1926 births 2012 deaths Nigerian generals Yoruba physicians Yoruba politicians CMS Grammar School, Lagos alumni People from Kaduna Alumni of the University of Glasgow Nigerian military doctors Foreign ministers of Nigeria International Olympic Committee members {{Nigeria-politician-stub