Denmark has formally requested that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognise its territories, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, as independent Olympic teams. On Tuesday, the national parliament published a letter urging the IOC to accept these semi-autonomous territories as “independent National Olympic Committees” and allow them to participate in the Olympic Games under their own flags.
This initiative revives a proposal made 20 years ago. The request comes shortly after the establishment of a new coalition government led by Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who has expressed her support for Greenland amidst US President Donald Trump‘s interest in acquiring the island.
Presently, the IOC recognises 206 national Olympic committees, exceeding the number of United Nations member states by 13, which may make it challenging for the IOC to grant Denmark’s request. The IOC has recognised only independent states since 1996, as seen in its recognition of Kosovo in 2014 and South Sudan in 2015. The Olympic Charter defines a “country” as “an independent state recognised by the international community.”
In recent Olympic events, two biathletes from Greenland represented Denmark at the Milan Cortina Olympics in February. Additionally, the Faroe Islands have been actively involved in qualifying matches for international soccer tournaments since participating in the 1992 European Championship and the 1994 World Cup. The Danish parliament has indicated that the letter sent to the IOC on June 18 reflects a strong and current political commitment by Denmark to promote enhanced and equitable international participation for both the Faroe Islands and Greenland.
This article used information from The Associated Press.
