On Thursday the Moroccan Olympic gold medalist Nawal El Moutawakel became the first Muslim woman elected to the IOC's executive board. She had 85 votes for and 12 against from a total of 97 votes.
El Moutawakel won her seat unopposed after both Puerto Rican Richard Carrion and Britain's Craig Reedie withdrew from running against her to ensure there was one woman on the IOC executive Board."I feel very honored to be a member of this big family," El Moutawakel said after her election. "Thank you very much for the trust you are putting in me."
IOC Vice President Gunilla Lindberg's term ended on Wednesday and the board would have had no woman members had El Moutawakel not been elected.
The 15-member board is responsible for setting the Olympic agenda. It meets four times a year and can ban athletes from Games for doping offences.
The IOC said in 1996 it would aim for a 20 percent share of women in its overall membership but is still way off that target with only 16 women out of 110 members.
The U.S-educated El Moutawakel, who won Olympic gold in the 400 meters hurdles in 1984, joined the IOC in 1998, and has been a member of various commissions.
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Moroccan woman joins IOC
Tags: Moroccan Morocco Fes, Maghreb news
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