Katulin was joined by seven members of the panel: Czech Republic's Martin Doktor, The Netherlands' Jeroen Bijl, Norway's Bjorn Sigurd Sommerfeldt, Poland's Adam Krzesiński, Portugal's Victor Fonseca Da Mota, San Marino's Eros Bologna and athlete representative Alessandra Sensini.

Discussions were not revealed in detail, but focused on "topical issues", principally involving final preparation for August's Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Officials have sought to provide reassurances that Rio 2016 will be a success despite multiple concerns in the build-up, with EOC President Patrick Hickey claiming the "Brazilian carnival spirit" will make it a success.

The meeting came as the EOC continues to build upon its close relations with Belarus ahead of Minsk hosting the EOC General Assembly in October.

A delegation from the EOC Rome secretariat has also visited to establish "closer contacts" with their counterparts to ensure good preparations for the meeting.

They met Secretary General Anatoly Kotov and his staff and were "fully satisfied" with their great commitment, it was claimed.

All EOC meetings in Minsk are expected to be a "true organisational success", a statement on the EOC website said.

Minsk was among the cities mooted as potential hosts for the second edition of the European Games in 2019, for which a location is yet to be confirmed.

Belarus President and National Olympic Committee of the Republic of Belarus head Alexander Lukashenko was honoured by the EOC in 2008 "for his Outstanding Contribution to the Olympic Movement".