Members of the IOC are meeting this week in Buenos Aires to decide on the location of the 2020 Olympics (Madrid, Istanbul or Tokyo) and then, next week, to vote on the next chairman. Mr Bach's legal background has helped put him in a strong position among the six candidates. He has worked in numerous relevant areas including TV rights, drugs and other legal issues.  He is likely to be backed by IOC voters from Europe, the largest constituency within the IOC. 

An ability to handle difficult legal issues has proved itself useful at the IOC which in recent years has faced many such problems, including the Salt Lake City bribery scandal in 2002. 

The Financial Times puts Mr Bach in first place at the moment: 'He is the man to beat'.