PETA urges IOC to put pressure on LVMH ahead of 2024 Olympics

Following reports that LVMH is set to be an official sponsor of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, PETA has sent a letter to the International Olympic Committee to increase pressure on the group to stop using fur and exotic skins.

In a letter to IOC president Thomas Bach, PETA Vice President Mimi Bekhechi urged him to "greenlight LVMH’s sponsorship only if the fashion company agrees to stop selling fur and exotic skins."

He added: "LVMH has so far failed to act responsibly and continues to risk the public’s health with its mink coats and python bags. We all know the terrible toll COVID-19 took on lives around the globe, so it would be unconscionable for the next Olympic Games to be sponsored by a company that supports these dangerous industries."

The 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games were postponed to July 2021 as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics were held behind closed doors following the emergence of the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

While sponsorship agreements have yet to be officially confirmed between the luxury group and organising committee, the confirmed sponsors of the 2024 Olympics include public bank BPCE, retailer Carrefour and telecoms company Orange.

A PETA Asia investigation into two Indonesian slaughterhouses that supply LVMH showed workers striking pythons repeatedly on the head before suspending them in the air.

Designers including Burberry, Calvin Klein, Chanel, and Victoria Beckham have all banned fur and exotic skins from their collections.