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Of the seven candidates running to be the next president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Swedish-British billionaire Johan Eliasch is something of an outlier.

The 62-year-old president of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) was a surprise entry into the race to replace Thomas Bach last year, shortly after he became a member of the IOC – a prerequisite for the role. 

In his bid to beat World Athletics president Lord Sebastian Coe and other contenders in March, Eliasch is making the most of his business background and track record on climate issues. 

“For the Olympics, this [the climate crisis] is a big topic because it is incumbent on mankind to address this. And we’re so much bigger than just sport,” Eliasch tells Euronews Green. 

The IOC’s next president will be elected via a secret ballot in Greece, and be the face of the Olympic Games’s guardian organisation for at least the next eight years.

Who is Johan Eliasch?

The former CEO of sports equipment company Head, Eliasch has used his wealth and financial nous to put a focus on tackling deforestation over the last 20 years. He bought a 1,600 square kilometres tract of Amazonian rainforest in 2005 and co-founded the charity Cool Earth the following year – which transfers cash to rainforest communities, supporting them to resist logging companies. 

Protecting biodiversity is “very close to my heart,” Eliasch says. Despite being a big Conservative donor in the UK, he left the party to serve as a special advisor to Gordon Brown’s Labour government in 2007, tasked with carrying out a review into deforestation and clean energy.

He also chaired the technology and innovation advisory group as part of the UK’s Net Zero Review in 2021.

But does this impressive green side of his CV make him the obvious favourite for concerned global citizens? What is his brand of environmentalism exactly?

Eliasch’s climate plans for the Olympics

“The best way is no sort of magic wand here that’s going to fix everything, it’s just lots of small actions,” Eliasch says of climate action.

One of his most striking proposals is to create a ‘Forest City’, whereby a portion of rainforest the same size as the Olympic host city is conserved. This builds on the IOC’s Olympic Forest, which restores degraded landscapes across Africa’s Sahel region as part of the Great Green Wall initiative. 

As for tackling direct emissions, Eliasch tells Euronews he will leave no stone unturned in the quest to make the Games as sustainable as possible. These include such small stones as encouraging local organisers to finetune traffic light switching, as well as train and flight schedules. AI could be applied to the electricity grid to make it run more efficiently, he suggests. 

The Paris Games last year succeeded in halving carbon emissions compared with the London 2012 and Rio 2016 average, thanks to a comprehensive strategy planned years in advance.

Some of its efforts proved controversial – such as the design of the Olympic Village with cardboard beds and no air conditioning units. Eliasch says he will look to “save carbon footprints in other areas, as opposed to taking it beyond what is comfortable for the athletes.”

This balance between sustainability and comfort is one of a number of tensions in his manifesto – and indeed in the IOC’s mission to deliver a world-class event during the climate crisis. 

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Eliasch envisages future Olympic Summer Games in Africa, India and the Middle East – three regions spotlighted on his manifesto cover image. “I had this to show that everything is possible, we need to approach this with an open mind,” he says. 

But rising temperatures are already compromising the health of athletes and spectators in Europe. LA, host of the next Games in 2028, is recovering from devastating wildfires that only just spared its Olympic venues. So there are big question marks over how the Olympics could be safely delivered in hotter regions.   

Not to mention that part of Paris’s carbon-cutting success was down to using existing infrastructure. Construction emissions in developing countries are likely to be substantial.

‘To me, climate action is not political’

Another tension within the IOC agenda: how much can an organisation fiercely committed to the principle of political neutrality push for climate action?

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“In the context of climate action, I think here we are on the borders of what is political and nonpolitical,” Eliasch says. “We’re no longer in the domain of neutrality. 

“The question is, is this political? To me, climate action is not political.” His service to different UK governments is testament to that belief, and it has taught him the importance of measures being science-based, rather than led by public opinion.

The IOC already has observer status at the annual UN climate summit, but Eliasch would like to see its participation at COPs scaled up, to make the most of its global influence. 

A view of climate change from the slopes and the sky

Eliasch comes from the ‘winter’ side of the Olympics, and has seen first-hand how resorts at lower levels are becoming too warm for even fake snow. He is “fully in favour” of a rotation scheme where a designated number of places take it in turn to host the Games.

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A keen skier himself since the age of two, the FIS president has witnessed snow disappear from Stockholm. “Seeing that had a profound impact on my thinking and what you see, if you fly over the Amazonas and you look down, you see all these bald patches, same in Africa.”

This brings us to the billionaires’ ‘bird’s eye view’ that might give some climate campaigners pause for thought. 

Eliasch – who has declined to answer whether he owns a private jet in previous interviews – starts by talking about population issues. “The planet wasn’t designed for 8.5 billion people living the way we do, which brings issues to do with food, water, energy, climate, weather, security.”

Pressed on whether the overconsumption of a small proportion of people is the bigger problem, Eliasch says that “everybody…has a responsibility to make sure that we minimise our carbon footprint and that we take action. And the more resources you have at your disposal, the more you can do. And I always make sure that I do as much as I can in this matter.” 

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“Don’t ask governments what they will do for climate change. Ask yourself what you can do for mankind,” he adds.

Some of the climate techno-fixes he suggests – like spectators travelling to the Games on flights using sustainable aviation fuels, and solar panels in space – will raise eyebrows too.

Eliasch is used to criticism. “I’m exposed every day, being president of FIS. So I’m used to that, I don’t have a problem with it,” he says.

Earlier this month, he was in the news for his connection to the UK’s Prince Andrew, who has been accused of using a false name when registering a company the pair set up in 2002.

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Becoming head of the IOC would likely invite more personal scrutiny. But, Eliasch says, “It’s not a popularity contest. Mustn’t be. We’re not voting for a mascot. We have to vote for the right person with the right experience who can deliver.”

Eliasch believes he is that person, not least because of his expertise on sustainability. 

“In a healthy democracy, you always have different opinions about how things can be done,” he adds. “Always let the best ideas win.”