Speaking on the day before the 43rd EOC Seminar, Capralos updated committee members on progress in this area as he spoke about the modernisation plans for the organisation.

During the opening day of the seminar there were suggestions from two National Olympic Committee delegates for a "sport expert group" to be set up to deal with future sports programming for the European Games, the third edition of which is scheduled to take place in Krakow-Malopolska from June 21 to July 2.

In response, Hasan Arat, chair of the 2023 European Games Coordination Commission, invited members to "show respect to all work done and focus on what is just in front of us."

Stressing that the organisation in Poland had taken place under "very, very difficult circumstances", which included the taking in of more than two million refugees from Ukraine and the impact of economic difficulties, he said: "We all do our best.

"Yes, we need a solid programme and we are going to discuss about all the issues for the Games at a debriefing, as always we do.

"But I need to remind you that the Kraków Games will have the best sports programme these Games have ever had, as 18 sports are European qualifiers for the Olympic Games."

Arat told the Executive Committee that Games sponsors LOT Airlines were offering a "very positive" commercial deal for National Olympic Committees (NOCs).

The airlines had established a dedicated office to deal directly with NOCs but unfortunately not many NOCs had as yet taken up this offer.

After mentioning the new appointments on the horizon, Capralos reflected on the importance of high standards of governance.

He noted that good governance is not just the application of core principles like transparency and accountability, but the creation of mechanisms to effectively deliver core parts of the Olympic Movements mission in Europe, including sustainability and gender equality.

The EOC President also emphasised the importance of solidarity with Ukraine and the need to work on the return of athletes and their integration.

He also spoke about the importance of continuing the strong relations with the European Union and highlighted how this is coming to fruition with the recent support to Poland and the Polish organisers of the European Games.

Back on the theme of modernisation, he noted that the streaming of the most recent European Youth Olympic Festival on the EOC Channel had increased its popularity and reach.

In his report, the EOC secretary general, Raffaele Pagnozzi, told the committee that the World Anti-Doping Agency had completed their Code Compliance Review.

The only request was for EOC to offer athletes the possibility of using the REVEAL whistleblowing platform, which the EOC have provided.