We announce with satisfaction that the “Olympic Memoirs” of Pierre de Coubertin have been translated into Swahili language by Mr. Muharam Mchume, member of the International Olympic Academy Participants Association-IOAPA- country coordinator for Tanzania. A special effort has been made to have this translation ready on 2 September, the day when we remember the passing of Pierre de Coubertin in 1937 in Geneva.

Our thanks and congratulations go to Mr. Muharam Mchume who voluntarily initiated and worked tirelessly on this extraordinary translation. It is very important for the International Pierre de Coubertin Committee (IPCC) to provide this work to millions of African Swahili speakers of all ages who will learn about the person of Pierre de Coubertin, his life, his work, his vision of the world and the foundation of modern Olympic Games. 

Swahili is a native language to millions of speakers in East and Central-African communities: Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. It is the mostly used language in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, Zambia and a working language of the African Union to more than 200 million of Swahili speakers. The UNESCO has proclaimed the 7 July as the official day of the Swahili language.

The IPCC also extends its sincere gratitude to Swahili Council of Tanzania – BAKITA and Dr. Hassan Abas –Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Sports for their contribution to the completion of this book. 

We look forward to developing more projects in collaboration with Swahili societies in the future.