The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) have suspended all financial payments to Sri Lanka’s National Olympic Committee (NOCSL), effective December 10, 2024. However, direct payments to athletes benefiting from Olympic scholarships remain unaffected, the NOCSL has been informed via email.
In response to this decision, a special General Meeting of the NOCSL was convened yesterday (December 13). During the meeting, it was decided to hold early elections for the committee, a move passed with a two-thirds majority vote.
While the current term of the NOCSL executive committee is set to expire in April 2026, the election will now be held before March next year, following recommendations from the IOC.
The suspension of funds was formally communicated through a joint letter dated December 10, signed by IOC Director of NOC Relations and Olympic Solidarity James Macleod and OCA Director General Husain Al-Musallam.
The decision is seen as part of efforts to pressure the NOCSL to address concerns raised in an ethics committee report. The report recommends the immediate suspension of the current Secretary General of NOCSL, Maxwell de Silva, pending further investigations into allegations of ethics violations and misuse of funds by law enforcement and other statutory authorities.
