Édouard-Émile, Baron de Laveleye

Édouard-Émile, Baron de Laveleye was the driving force behind the creation of the Belgian Olympic Committee in 1906, and was president from 1906-23. Baron de Laveleye was a good tennis player and fencer. He was co-opted onto the IOC in May 1913, although later IOC records list this as occurring in 1919. However, the minutes of the 1913 IOC Session in Lausanne note that he was co-opted but that his seat “should not be considered permanent”. However, when Belgium hosted the 1920 Antwerpen Olympics, the nation became entitled to two IOC members and de Laveleye remained a member until his death in November 1938.