Australia's John Coates to become IOC vice-president

Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) president John Coates will be elected as the new International Olympic Committee (IOC) vice-president after his Syrian rival Sami Moudallah withdrew from the vote.

The Australian Olympic chief was due to face Moudallah in the ballot scheduled for Wednesday but Moudallah withdrew his bid Tuesday, reports Xinhua. (Also read: Thomas Bach goes in as favourite in IOC presidential vote)

The 63-year-old Coates, who has been with IOC since 2001, will be voted in at the 125th session of the IOC here Wednesday morning. Coates said he had received enormous support in his quest to become the vice-president.

"I am truly honoured that none of my colleagues has chosen to stand against me and looking forward to supporting our new president and ultimately the athletes we represent. I thank my senior IOC colleague Kevan Gosper for the encouragement and support. Kevan is the only other Australian to have held the position and his support and continuing wise counsel means a great deal to me," Coates said.

Gosper, who spent 17 years on the IOC executive board, said Coates' imminent election was well deserved.

"It is a great privilege for us to have a vice-president of the IOC who is an Australian," Gosper said.

Coates will be the second Australian to fill the position of IOC vice-president after Gosper. The Australian sports administrator played a key role in the 2000 Sydney Olympics bid. His involvement in Australia's Olympic teams dates back to 1976 Montreal, when he was rowing manager.