The International Olympic Committee announced it will award a series of scholarships to support Palestinian athletes as they prepare for next year’s Asian Games and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Following a Wednesday meeting with the Palestinian National Olympic Committee, the IOC said the scholarships, funded through its Olympic Solidarity program, will help athletes prepare for the 2025 Asian Youth Games in Bahrain, the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar, the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
About 50 Palestinian athletes are expected to benefit, with the primary goal of securing spots at the Los Angeles Games – a significant step, as typically fewer than 10 Palestinians compete in the Olympics.
“Like everyone interested in peace for the region, we follow the current diplomatic developments very closely and hope that they can soon lead to a pathway to peace,” IOC President Kirsty Coventry said in a statement following a meeting with Palestinian Olympic Committee chief Jibril Rajoub.
Israel maintains its war in Gaza is not against the population but against the Hamas group, whose members carried out the Oct. 7, 2023, incursion on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and led to the capture of 251 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
The war in Gaza has killed more than 66,000 people, according to local health officials.
“Our deepest sympathy continues to go out to all those affected by this conflict, and we naturally stand in solidarity with the Olympic community in the region,” Coventry said.
Last year, the IOC announced its support for the Palestinian Olympic Committee’s “Palestinian Sports Revival Plan” and offered to help coordinate international efforts to fund the rebuilding of destroyed sports facilities.
The Olympic body has also resisted calls to ban Israel from the Olympics, amid similar pressures in other sports.
This week, Norwegian Football Federation President Lise Klaveness said Israel should be banned from international competitions over the war in Gaza.
The IOC has said neither the Israeli Olympic Committee nor the Palestinian Olympic Committee has violated its Olympic Charter in any way that would warrant consideration of a sanction.
