Call for action against all forms of corruption in sport
Open letter to the IOC President and the International Olympic Committee, gathered in Copenhagen, Denmark on the occasion of the 121st IOC Session and the XIII IOC Congress
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Open letter to the IOC Presidentand the International Olympic Committee,gathered in Copenhagen, Denmarkon the occasion ofthe 121st IOC Sessionand the XIII IOC Congress
October, 2009
Dear President Rogge and IOC members,
Call for action against all forms of corruption in sport
We believe the time has come to act against all forms of corruption in sports.
We are alarmed that the sporting community is now in a situation where worldwide illegal gamblers and match-fixers are operating at all levels of sport. Their activities are a small slice of an illegal gambling market that is worth hundreds of billions of dollars and poses an imminent threat to the core values and credibility of sport.
Also, we believe that within a number of sports and national associations non-transparent and corrupt practices continue. For instance, the ISL affair in which a small group of leaders in international sport has cashed in more than 100 million dollars as secret personal commissions in return for TV and marketing rights should be met with a strong response.
We believe that there is a number of other forms of corruption in sport: human trafficking, money laundering and tax evasion. These activities are thriving thanks to the non-intervention of the sports community, local and national governments, sports sponsors, the media and other stakeholders.
We believe that the global sports community has an obligation to act as a role model of transparency, accountability and democracy if it is to promote positive social, cultural and personal values to society and youth.
The International Olympic Committee is the worldwide leader in sports. It has the moral aspirations as well as financial and political clout to show effective political leadership in this matter.
Therefore, we urge the IOC to take immediate, concrete and convincing steps to counter all forms of corruption in sport in order to safeguard the social, cultural and educational values of sport.
We ask you to urgently consider all relevant measures, including
- a definition of common standards of good governance and accountability
- a strengthening of the role of the Ethical Committees in sport so they can be allowed to act truly independently and have capacity to sanction those who violate the rules
- a modernisation of the way international federations manage democracy and transparency
- mechanisms for exchange of information and intelligence related to corruption
- and, if necessary, the establishment of an international anti-corruption institution for all countries and all sports
In a defining moment for world sport, we call on the IOC to take decisive steps.
Yours sincerely,
Adam Jefferson KreekRower, Trainer, Author, EntrepreneurOlympic Gold Medallist , two-times OlympianCanada
Aidan WhiteGeneral SecretaryInternational Federation of JournalistsBelgium
Alessandro DonatiMember of the governmental Anti-Doping CommissionRome Ministry of HealthItaly
Andrew JenningsInvestigative reporterAuthorUnited Kingdom
Anne-Marie DohmRectorDanish School of Media and JournalismDenmark
Bert SchaapSportswriterDe TelegraafHolland
Bob MunroChairmanMathare UnitedKenya
Christel SchaldemoseMember of the European ParliamentDenmark
Christopher A. ShawProfessor, AuthorUniversity of British ColumbiaCanada
Dave BoyleChief ExecutiveSupporters DirectUnited Kingdom
David RoweProfessor of Cultural ResearchUniversity of Western SydneyAustralia
Declan HillInvestigative Journalist, PhDCanada
Eduardo GaleanoAuthorUruguay
Ezequiel Fernández MooresSports EditorANSA LatinamericaArgentina
Florian PetricaEditor-in-Chief of SportThe Money Channel, Realitatea MediaRomania
Gary WicksPhD, Associate Professor EmeritusSt. Olaf CollegeUSA
Gerhard TreutleinProfessorCentre for Doping Prevention, HeidelbergGermany
Henning EichbergLecturer, Dr. Phil.University of Southern DenmarkDenmark
Henrik BrandtDirectorDanish Institute for Sports StudiesDenmark
Ivan WaddingtonVisiting ProfessorNorwegian School of Sport Sciences and University of ChesterUnited Kingdom
Jan MühletalerM.A., Head of sectionNeue Zürcher ZeitungSwitzerland
Jens BrinchChairman of the Board of Play the GameFormer Secretary General of the Sports Confederation of GreenlandDenmark
Jens Sejer AndersenDirectorPlay the GameDenmark
Jens WeinreichInvestigative journalistAuthorwww.jensweinreich.deGermany
John BeechHead of Sport & Tourism Applied ResearchCoventry UniversityUnited Kingdom
John ThraneEditor-in-ChiefDanish Association of Company Sport (DFIF)Denmark
John VolkersSports reporterde VolkskrantHolland
Joseph MaguireProfessor, School of Sport & Exercise SciencesLoughborough UniversityUnited Kingdom
Jørgen PovlsenHead of the Institute of Sport Science and Clinical BiomechanicsUniversity of Southern DenmarkDenmark
Jørn HansenLecturer, Institute of Sport Science and Clinical BiomechanicsUniversity of Southern DenmarkDenmark
Kaj KunnasSports JournalistOY Yleisradio AB/Finnish Broadcasting CompanyFinland
Kim SchimmelAssociate Professor of the Sociology of SportKent State UniversityUSA
Lasse SvenssonChairman, County Sports Federation of VästmanlandFormer national and international volleyball leaderSweden
Laura RobinsonInvestigative journalistAuthorCanada
Malcolm ClarkeChairmanFootball Supporters FederationEngland and Wales
Mario RodriguesEditorAll Sports Magazine, MumbaiIndia
Mike McNameeProfessor of Applied EthicsSwansea UniversityUnited Kingdom
Nikki DrydenHuman Rights Attorney Two-time Olympic swimmerCanada /USA
Olukayode ThomasSports EditorTimbuktu MediaNigeria
Paul Einar BorgenMarketing DirectorSportsmasterNorway
Sigmund LolandProfessorThe Norwegian School of Sport SciencesNorway
Søren RiiskjærDirector of the Secretariat of Sports PoliticsDanish Gymnastics and Sports Associations (DGI)Denmark Tegla LoroupeUnited Nations Ambassador of SportLong-distance runner, Olympic bronze medallist and tree-times OlympianKenya
Terri ByersPrincipal Lecturer Sport ManagementCoventry UniversityUnited Kingdom
Terry MonningtonDirector of Physical Education and SportUniversity of WarwickUnited Kingdom
Tine Rindum TeilmannBoard member, Danish Paralympic Committeemember of the IOC’s Women in Sport CommissionDenmark
Tjeerd VeenstraDirector De LottoChair Legal, Statutes & Members Committee, European LotteriesHolland
Veerle De BosscherLecturer in Sports ManagementVrije Universiteit BrusselBelgium
Wladimir AndreffProfessor Emeritus at the University Paris 1 Panthéon Sorbonne Honorary President of the International Association of Sport Economists FranceFrance
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For further reference please contact Jens Sejer Andersen
Director, Play the Game
+45 20 71 07 01
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