IOC announces winners of Climate Action Awards 2025

AMTV/Mailn, Italy, Feb 4 – Olympic hockey player Hugo Inglis from New Zealand, Olympic rugby sevens player Kevin Wekesa from Kenya, the National Olympic Committee of the Netherlands (NOC*NSF) and the International Biathlon Union (IBU) have been named the winners of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Climate Action Awards 2025, in recognition of their efforts to address climate change and make sport more sustainable.

The announcement was made during the IOC Session held in Milan, ahead of the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

“As athletes, we learn early on to focus on what we can control and to keep pushing and adapt, even when conditions are not perfect,” said IOC President Kirsty Coventry. “That spirit is exactly what drives the IOC Climate Action Awards. Our winners are showing that protecting our planet and pursuing excellence can go hand in hand. Their work shows the impact of the Olympic community when it leans in together with purpose. What an inspiration.”

“Congratulations to the 2025 winners and those ‘Highly Commended’,” said Mark Price, Principal and Global Lead Client Service Partner for the International Olympic Committee at Deloitte Consulting LLP. “Leveraging their athletic drive, the winners were compelling in their ability to deliver measurable benefits and scalable solutions. Deloitte is honoured to be a Worldwide Olympic and Paralympic Partner and delighted to support these awards, which help to enhance resilience for sports and communities globally.”

Meet the winners of the IOC Climate Action Awards 2025

Athlete category

Hugo Inglis (Hockey, New Zealand)

New Zealand hockey player Hugo Inglis is the co-founder of High Impact Athletes (HIA), a global movement that channels athlete visibility and resources towards evidence-based climate solutions.

Motivated by the contradiction between a career built on international travel and his environmental convictions, Hugo helped establish HIA as a platform for athletes who want to contribute beyond reducing their own footprint. Through HIA, athlete funding is channelled to evidence-based organisations, delivering high-impact solutions in sectors that drive a large share of sport’s emissions, including aviation, energy and infrastructure.

Today, HIA brings together more than 240 athletes from 50 disciplines and 35 countries. It has directed more than USD 2 million to charities that deliver impact in the areas of climate, global health and animal welfare.

Hugo’s personal choices – from eco-conscious travel decisions to a plant-based diet and car-free lifestyle – reinforce his advocacy. With new partnerships, HIA plans to scale significantly, offering up to 600,000 athletes the opportunity to fundraise for climate solutions.

Kevin Wekesa (Rugby Sevens, Kenya)

Kenyan rugby sevens player Kevin Wekesa founded Play Green to use sport as a platform for climate action, responding to the rising temperatures and desertification that are already disrupting livelihoods across Kenya.

The programme has so far replaced single-use plastic bottles with reusable aluminium bottles for Kenya’s national rugby teams, saving nearly 1,000 plastic bottles every week.

At the same time, Kevin has embedded sustainability into education and community engagement. Through partnerships with 40 schools, Play Green combines tree-planting with workshops on water conservation, waste management and climate justice. To date, the initiative has supported the planting of 2,300 trees and engaged thousands of children in climate education.

Kevin has extended this work to clubs and federations, launching match-day recycling initiatives and installing clearly marked recycling bins and collection points to divert waste from landfill.

His ambition is to scale Play Green nationwide by introducing plastic-free stadium zones, encouraging biodegradable packaging and establishing a Green Ambassador programme in schools. With the support of this award, Kevin aims to turn these plans into a replicable model for grassroots climate action through sport.

National Olympic Committee category

NOC of the Netherlands (NOC*NSF)

The NOC*NSF has developed an integrated approach to sustainable mobility that is reshaping how athletes and staff travel.

Recognising that domestic travel accounted for nearly 70 per cent of its emissions, the NOC*NSF launched a comprehensive strategy to address the issue at its source, by combining electric vehicles, e-bikes and a digital mobility platform into a single, integrated system.

As a result, 65 per cent of Team NL’s fleet has already transitioned to electric vehicles, contributing to a 40 per cent reduction in emissions, with full electrification planned by 2027. A dedicated mobility card and app, used by 850 athletes and 300 employees, integrates public transport, shared mobility and EV charging to promote low-emission travel throughout the year.

Beyond mobility, the NOC*NSF has tackled emissions from procurement and equipment. For the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, a shift to more sustainable clothing options for participants’ kit cut related emissions from 206.7 tonnes of CO₂ at Tokyo 2020 to 60.9 tonnes in Paris – a reduction of more than 70 per cent. Taken together, these procurement changes and the wider sustainable mobility strategy are setting a benchmark for systemic, long-term impact in team operations.

International Federation category

International Biathlon Union (IBU)

The IBU has been recognised for a comprehensive climate strategy that spans competitions, operations and community engagement.

As the first Winter International Federation to include its World Cups and World Championships in a climate transition plan, the IBU achieved a 6 per cent reduction in direct and indirect emissions across all three scopes of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol in 2024, largely through increased use of renewable energy. Its Athlete Ambassador Programme empowers 26 athletes from 17 countries to champion climate action by leading social media campaigns, engaging with fans at events and speaking at international conferences.

The Biathlon Climate Challenge has mobilised 12,000 fans to take part in climate-positive activities, resulting in the planting of 150,000 trees in Sub-Saharan Africa. The Federation also supports its national members by helping them develop sustainability strategies, calculate carbon footprints and implement climate measures tailored to their context.

Guided by clear targets, namely a 50 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030 and net zero by 2040, the IBU is aligning ambition with implementation to help ensure that biathlon can continue to thrive in a rapidly changing climate.

The following finalists have been recognised in the “Highly Commended” category:

NOC of Spain (COE)

The COE has received a “Highly Commended” recognition for its structured and measurable approach to decarbonisation and governance.

Since 2018, the COE has reduced its emissions by close to 28 per cent across all three scopes under the Greenhouse Gas Protocol – covering direct emissions, purchased energy and other indirect sources – through a plan that prioritises sustainable mobility, 100 per cent renewable electricity, solar panels, LED lighting and resource efficiency. To extend its impact beyond its own operations, the COE created the Sustainable Sports Seal, a certification system that embeds environmental, social and economic criteria into the management of sporting events and organisations.

The seal, which has been externally audited, has so far been awarded to 11 sporting events and seven sports organisations. Certified events, such as the Castellón Companies Race, have recorded significant year-on-year emissions reductions. With a target to halve emissions by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2040, the COE is offering a scalable model for other NOCs seeking to integrate sustainability into their activities.

World Sailing

World Sailing has received a “Highly Commended” recognition for its data-driven work to reduce emissions from support vessels, one of sailing’s most carbon-intensive elements.

In partnership with a maritime technology company that provides efficiency tracking for support vessels, World Sailing deployed the emissions-tracking system at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games to monitor 285 boats. The data revealed opportunities to cut fuel consumption and emissions by more than 20 per cent through practical measures, such as optimising fleet size, standardising engine power and providing eco-piloting training to influence driving behaviour on the water. Combined with an existing quota system that caps the number of coach boats, these measures form the basis of a long-term strategy to introduce efficiency standards across sailing events.

This data-led approach is helping World Sailing develop a blueprint for more sustainable event delivery and supporting the wider sailing community in lowering its carbon footprint.

About the IOC Climate Action Awards

Now in their third edition, the IOC Climate Action Awards recognise and celebrate athletes, National Olympic Committees and International Federations that are delivering measurable progress in the fight against climate change.