International Olympic Committee Presents Pierre de Coubertin Medal to Ed Hula
June 23, 2023 (Lausanne, Switzerland) – The International Olympic Committee today presented the Pierre
de Coubertin Medal—among the rarest honors bestowed by the organization—to longtime Olympic editor and reporter Ed Hula, commemorating over 30 years of news coverage of the Olympic Movement.
The medal was presented to Hula at a special ceremony hosted by IOC President Thomas Bach at the IOC
headquarters in Lausanne.
The IOC Executive Board voted to bestow the medal in March 2023 to honor Hula’s 35 years of Olympic
reporting and 30+ years as founder and editor of Around The Rings, which became known as the world’s
leading news source for the Olympic Movement.
“While I have put in some hard yards covering the Olympics, this recognition from the IOC is only possible through the talents and support of great colleagues, including family,” said Hula. “Thanks to the IOC for including me, us, among the Pierre de Coubertin medalists. It is an honor to join these ranks named for the founder of the Games I became destined to follow.”
Upon presenting the medal to Hula, IOC President Thomas Bach said: “Over the past 40 years, Ed Hula has covered the Olympic Games for radio, television, print and online publications, making him one of the few, if not the one and only, truly multimedia Olympic Games correspondent. During this time, the world of journalism and the Olympic Movement have undergone tremendous changes, and Ed was always at the forefront to report on those developments—and to report them using the leading medium of the day.”
“In doing so, you have established yourself as one of the foremost Olympic experts,” Bach added, addressing Hula directly. “Knowing that Coubertin shared the same passion for Olympic journalism as you … it is only appropriate that we honor your today with the medal that bears the name of our dear founder.”
Hula began his Georgia career during the 1980s as a writer / producer for CNN, then moved to Peach State Public Radio. He became news director for the then nine-station network and started following the nascent bid for the 1996 Centennial Olympic Games. Hula’s voice became familiar to thousands of Atlanta listeners when he was named Olympics editor for WGST News Radio, “the information station” for the 1996 Games.
Shortly before the Barcelona Olympics in 1992, Hula launched his own company and published The Hula
Report, which was later re-branded Around the Rings. In the years since, Hula has become one of the world’s most respected sports business journalists, travelling to nearly 100 countries in his coverage of the Olympics and elite sport events. Hula has interviewed world leaders including British Prime Minister Tony Blair and President Vladimir Putin of Russia. ATR was acquired by Infobae (Argentina) in May 2021.
Created in 1997, the Pierre de Coubertin Medal is awarded by the IOC to educators, writers, sports
executives, cultural figures, corporate leaders and others, including Olympic family members, who exemplify the Olympic spirit and its ideals through exceptional service to the Olympic Movement. The medal was previously awarded 45 times, with Hula as the fourth U.S. recipient following former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in 2000, Utah businessman Spencer Eccles in 2002 and Atlanta-based writer/producer and Olympic bid veteran George Hirthler in 2022. Today’s ceremony also included Coubertin Medal recipient Jean Durry of France for his decades of Olympic historian work.
Following Hirthler, Hula is the second Coubertin Medal recipient with significant ties to the 1996 Olympic
Games.
Hula graduated from Florida State University with a bachelor’s degree in government. He met Sheila during their overlapping tenures at CNN in Atlanta. They now reside near Orlando in Mount Dora, Fla., where earlier this year the Hulas launched a consultancy, Hula Sport Communications.
#Photos/interviews available. Please contact Nick Wolaver at nicholas.wolaver@gmail.com or +1 678-358-
7476