Emilio Fernández Peña, Appointed Honorary Academic by the Colombian Olympic Academy

In an increasingly interconnected academic world, this distinction highlights the importance of international partnerships in promoting the values of Olympism.

Professor Fernández Peña, director of the Olympic Studies Centre (CEO-UAB), has received this recognition awarded to individuals who have significantly contributed to the promotion and dissemination of Olympic values.

PhD in Communication from the University of the Basque Country, with an extraordinary award (2001), Fernández Peña has led the CEO-UAB since 2009. His academic and professional career has had an international scope, collaborating with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in the field of social media and in the design of the television exhibition at the IOC Olympic Museum in Lausanne (2014). He is also part of the international group that designs the educational offerings of the International Olympic Academy in Greece, and is a regular visiting professor at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Additionally, he is a member of the Research Group in Social Sciences in Sport – GRECSE (2021SGR00204).

The Colombian Olympic Academy, affiliated with the Colombian Olympic Committee, was established in 1992, with the mission of promoting and disseminating the principles of the Olympic Charter throughout Colombia. It brings together 20 members of the academic community and serves as a national forum for the exchange of ideas among the Olympic family, intellectuals, athletes, educators, and youth. Its objectives include preserving the Olympic spirit and promoting Olympism as a philosophy of life based on education, culture, and sport.

This appointment highlights the importance of international relations in the academic field, where the exchange of knowledge and experiences strengthens the universal values of sport and contributes to the development of a global community committed to the Olympic ideal.