Singapore's Ng Ser Miang (Photo: Reuters)
The IOC Vice President is set to become the second candidate for one of the top jobs in world sport after German Thomas Bach, also an IOC Vice President, announced his bid last week.
The 64-year-old businessman has been an IOC member since 1998 and becomes the first Asian to throw his hat into the ring for the election on Sept. 10 in Buenos Aires at the IOC session.
Singapore's Ambassador to Hungary and a former nominated member of parliament, Ng has seen his international sports profile considerably improved after he staged successful inaugural Youth Olympics in Singapore in 2010, the brainchild of outgoing president Jacques Rogge.
Rogge, who succeeded Juan Antonio Samaranch in 2001, sees his two-term presidency come to a mandatory end in September.
Asia will host the 2018 winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea while Tokyo is bidding for the 2020 summer Games.
There are more candidacies expected before the June 10 submission deadline, with Puerto Rican Richard Carrion, head of the IOC's Finance Commission, also seen as a presidential hopeful.
C.K. Wu of Taiwan and Swiss sports administrators Denis Oswald and Rene Fasel have also been mentioned as potential candidates along with former pole vault champion Sergei Bubka of Ukraine.
Ng could not be reached for a comment though the Singapore Olympic Committee sent out a media advisory saying Ng would "deliver remarks" in Paris on Thursday.
Seven of the eight IOC presidents to date have been European and one from the United States.
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