Rogge seeks second term

LONDON – Jacques Rogge is on course to remain as president of the International Olympic Committee until 2013.

The 66-year-old Belgian sent a letter to IOC members Friday confirming that he will seek re-election in 2009, a decision that was widely anticipated.

No other candidates are expected, meaning Rogge is nearly assured of being re-elected next October at the IOC general assembly in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Rogge was elected as the IOC’s eighth president in July 2001 in Moscow, Russia, succeeding Juan Antonio Samaranch, a Spaniard who served for 21 years.

Rogge’s eight-year term expires in 2009, and he is eligible for a second term of four years.

“When I was elected in 2001, I found the IOC in excellent condition thanks to the work of president Samaranch, and I have striven to consolidate it and make it flourish and develop,” Rogge said in the two-page letter, a copy of which was obtained by the Associated Press.

“It is now stronger and more united than ever, for the greater good of sports development and the Olympic ideals.”

Rogge, a former orthopedic surgeon who competed in three Olympics in sailing, had said he would make his decision after the Beijing Olympics and before the end of October. With the Beijing Games considered a tremendous organizational success, Rogge’s future was never in doubt.