Quick Facts
ScorpioBiography
Juan Antonio Samaranch Salisachs (born November 1, 1959) is the son of Juan Antonio i Samaranch (former president of the International Olympic Committee) and his late wife, Bibi Salisachs. He is married and has four children. He has a MBA degree from New York University and a degree in industrial engineering from Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Spain.
In 1986 he joined as an associate of The First Boston Corporation, in New York, until 1989. He was appointed that year to the vice-presidency, in the Corporate Finance area, at the English firm S.G. Warburg & Co. At the present, he is the CEO of GBS Finanzas, S.A. Before obtaining his MBA, he worked at International Flavors and Fragrances, as an accounting executive. He is fluent in English, Spanish, French, Italian and Catalan.
He is a member of the International Olympic Committee since 2001, representing Spain. He's also a member of the Spanish Olympic Committee and first vice-president of the International Modern Pentathlon Union since 1996.
Controversies
Scholarship controversy
The controversial figure of his father also affected his own life: while his father was president of the Spanish savings bank La Caixa, he got a scholarship to complete his MBA at New York University from the private foundation of this bank.
Wrestling exclusion from the Olympics
In February 2013 the IOC voted to eliminate a single sport from the Olympics. Although many experts predicted that the pentathlon would be removed due to its low popularity. Instead, wrestling was voted to be removed, despite having a larger athlete and fan base. Many cited Samaranch-Salisachs's influence to explain the IOCs reasoning. On 8 September 2013, the IOC announced that wrestling would remain part of the Summer Olympics, reversing the February decision.