Passing of Guam NOC Founder, Michael Reidy
The founder and first President of the Guam National Olympic Committee (GNOC), Michael Reidy, has passed away.
Reidy, also a former senator of Guam, passed away on March 30, 2021. 
He was the key person behind the affiliation of Guam as a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
ONOC extends its condolences to his family, to the GNOC, and the wider Guam sporting community for the loss of a sporting legend.
ONOC Gender Equality Webinars
ONOC’s Equity Commission held masterclass webinars for both male and female representatives of Oceania at the beginning of April.
The two separate webinars focused on gender equality with emphasis on the importance of women in sport.
International Women’s Day was held in March and the webinars rounded off the month dedicated to women.
Sports Journalist Association formed in Solomon Islands
The Solomon Islands Sports Journalists Association (SISJA) was officially established on April 9, 2021 with the election of four executive members.
SISJA will represent the interest of sports journalists, sports photographers and writers with the full support of the Media Association of Solomon Islands (MASI).
The association will represent sports media in the Solomon Islands and act as a consultant to organisers of major sports events who need guidance on media requirements, as well as feedback from its membership.
SISJA will be led by experienced sports journalists, Philip Lilomo (Chairman) and Elizabeth Osifelo (Vice Chairlady).
Version 2 of Tokyo 2020 Playbooks released
The International Olympic Committee (IOC), International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and the Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 (Tokyo 2020) have released the second editions of the Tokyo 2020 Playbooks.
Building on the first version released in February, the new Playbooks provide more specific details to participants about the countermeasures that will help ensure safe and successful Games for all those taking part and the residents of Tokyo and Japan.
The third and final version of the playbooks will be released in June.
ONOC Athletes’ Commission convenes first meeting for 2021
The Oceania National Olympic Committees (ONOC) Athletes’ Commission (AC) successfully convened its first meeting for 2021 – virtually – on Thursday 22 April, to discuss key initiatives for the year.
The meeting allowed commission members to discuss key initiatives for the year including updates from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Athletes’ Commission, Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) Athletes’ Commission, ONOC Commissions, Pacific Games Council, and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Athletes’ Commission.
A key update included athlete’s welfare at Tokyo 2020 Games with less than 73 days to go for the Games.
The ONOC AC will convene their second meeting after the Tokyo Games in August, with plans to work on strengthening their internal and external communications until then.
Recruitment to MEMOS XXIV (in English) and MEMOS IX (in French) is now open
Information about each of this year’s MEMOS editions (module subjects, dates and locations), as well as the MEMOS candidature form, are available at https://memos.degree/.
The deadline for applications is Tuesday 15 June, 2021.
Application for Olympic Solidarity MEMOS scholarship will be available on RELAY as of Monday 31 May, 2021, and will be subject to the same deadline of June 15.
Sport sector in Oceania to benefit from ONOC-SPC partnership
The Oceania National Olympic Committees (ONOC) and the Pacific Community Secretariat (SPC) have signed a partnership agreement to set the stage for the Pacific’s sporting sector to strengthen career pathways, technical expertise and administration skills across the region.
The Memorandum of Understanding commits ONOC’s Oceania Sport Education Programme (OSEP) to accredit its courses against the Pacific Qualifications Framework (PQF).
The accreditation process and the registration of OSEP’s realigned training courses on the Pacific Register of Qualifications and Standards will be implemented with the assistance of SPC’s education division, the Educational Quality and Assessment Programme (EQAP).