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Why did the International Olympic Committee move its headquarters to Lausanne, Switzerland?
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Olympic Games
An actress playing the role of an Athenian high priestess lights the Olympic flame in Athens, October 31, 2017. The torch was later carried to Pyeongchang, South Korea, for the 2018 Winter Olympics.
During the era of World War I, Pierre, baron de Coubertin—the founder and then-president of the International Olympic Committee—moved the organization's headquarters to Lausanne, Switzerland.12
This relocation was part of Coubertin's efforts to reconsolidate the Olympic movement during the conflict. By establishing the headquarters in a neutral country, he aimed to protect the committee's independence and further the ideology of "neo-Olympism," which emphasizes the pursuit of peace and intercultural communication through international sport. The headquarters have remained in Lausanne since that time.12