The Mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, presented this Monday in the Saló de Cent the Gold Medal for Sporting Merit of the city to Pere Miró Sellarés. The award recognizes his role in promoting Olympic values worldwide and his decisive contribution to the 1992 Olympic Games, one of the most significant moments in the city's contemporary history.
The event was also attended by other prominent figures from the sports world, including the Councilor for Sports, David Escudé; the Minister of Sports, Berni Álvarez; the President of the Spanish Olympic Committee (COE), Alejandro Blanco; and the honorary President of the IOC, Thomas Bach.
Collboni emphasized that the recognition of Miró "does absolute justice to the professional career of one of the highest-level sports leaders Barcelona, Catalonia, and Spain have had," noting that he is the Barcelonian with the most responsibility in the IOC after Joan Antoni Samaranch.
“"Pere Miró's professional career has taught us that the values of Olympism and sport are the values of peace"
The mayor recalled that Miró was part of a generation that embodied the "council of the prodigy of 1992," in the words of the then mayor Maragall.
Pere Miró Sellarés (Manresa, 1955) has had a distinguished career in service of sport, from the local level to international bodies. He began as an athlete at the Club Natació Manresa and held positions of great responsibility within the International Olympic Committee for over thirty years, including Technical Director, Director of Olympic Solidarity, and Deputy Director General.
His work has been characterized by a commitment to equal opportunities, the promotion of sport as a tool for cohesion, and the defense of Olympic values. His leadership of Olympic Solidarity has been crucial in ensuring access to sport in developing countries.
“"sport has helped to make their problems visible and improve the lives of these people"
Miró expressed his pride in seeing the Olympic movement as a "unique tool for peace and reconciliation" and a transformative element. He also highlighted the IOC's role concerning refugee populations.
Barcelona has been a central point in his life and professional journey. As a city councilor and a member of the management team for the 1992 Olympic Games, he significantly contributed to the city's urban, social, and sporting transformation, leaving a lasting legacy.
