2011 Daily - Day 3 - SportAccord Convention London 2011

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Sustainable Promise of Beach Games

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Face to Face with Chair of UK Sport

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Question of Sport with Sergey Bubka

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DAILY Issue 3 06|04|2011

www.sportaccordconvention.com

STELLAR LINE-UP AT THE CONVENTION TODAY Ed Moses, one of the greatest track and field athletes of all time, is a surprise addition to the SportAccord Convention line-up today.

It’s the icing on the cake for what is set to be another action-packed day with a galaxy of major speakers addressing the SportAccord Convention under the banner of Why Sport Matters.

They include Mayor of London Boris Johnson, Chair, LOCOG Lord Coe and former British athlete Dame Kelly Holmes.

There was disappointment when New Zealand rugby superstar Jonah Lomu had to cancel his visit to the convention. But all will be thrilled at the last-minute addition of Moses who re-wrote the 400-metre hurdles history books.

He won gold in the event at the 1976 and 1984 Olympic Games, set the world record four times and between 1977 and 1987 won 107 consecutive race finals (122 consecutive races). Moses did not lose a race in that period for nine years, nine months and nine days.

Moses will take part in the debate on “Are sporting heroes an endangered species?”

The sessions are: ● 1000 – 1100: Why sport matters to London (includes Boris Johnson and Lord Coe) Ed Moses to join a star-studded line-up at today’s sessions. ● 1115 – 1200: Are sporting heroes an endangered species (includes (includes Leonardo Gryner, Chief Executive, chief Executive, Rio 2016 Organising Moses and Sir Clive Woodward, Director of Sport, British Olympic Association) Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games. ● 1215 – 1300: The future of sports sponsorships, with Scott McCune, Vice President, ● 1530 – 1630: Trend watch – From boardroom to playing field: CEOs of sport (includes Global Partnerships and Experiential Marketing, Coca-Cola.

Greg Clarke, Chairman, The Football League). ● 1415 – 1515: Destination Brazil; How emerging markets are shaping the future of sport ■

SPORT ‘UNDER THREAT’ FROM ORGANISED CRIME The Mafia make more out of the traffic in illegal steroids than they do from heroin, David Howman told LawAccord delegates yesterday.

The secretary-general of the World Anti-Doping Agency made the observation as he introduced the first session of yesterday’s LawAccord International Convention at the Park Plaza County Hall. The session, attended by dozens of sports law professionals, debated whether international sports anti-dop-

ing law might act as a model for global lawmaking in general.

“WADA sets an example of how private enterprise can work with governments,” Howman said. “So why should we not use that model to help protect sport against the multiple threats it faces?”

The New Zealander expressed his disquiet at the scale of the criminal challenge facing sport. “The underworld is probably taking over world

sport – it’s probably now interfering in 20 per cent of global sporting activity,” he said. “Trafficking in drugs like EPO, human growth hormone and steroids is hugely profitable – a ten-dollar investment yields a thousand-dollar return.”

Nor are drugs the only reason for criminal activity in sport. “The same people are also involved in gambling,” he said. “They use the legal betting industry to launder the proceeds of drugs and illegal gambling.”

Howman pointed also to the incidence of bribery and corruption among the very people whose duty it is to help enforce anti-doping measures. “We hear regularly of anti-doping officers approaching laboratory staff and asking them to skew results in favour of the tested athlete.”

He concluded: “Why don’t we take a holistic view of the issues that affect the integrity of sport and see how lawmakers can respond across the board?”

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HERE’S TO NEW SPORTING DIMENSIONS AND BEYOND FOLLOW EVENTS ON TWITTER

Delegates at the SportAccord Convention, and anyone else around the world interested in sports decision-making will be able to follow events this week on Twitter.

Our Twitter feed can be accessed by going to Twitter.com/saconvention When tweeting use the official event hash tag #SACon

GOLD SPONSORS

HOST PARTNERS

THE SPORTACCORD DAILY TEAM The SportAccord Daily is produced on behalf of the organisers by Trident Communications.

Editor : Mike Martin Production Editor : Rick Haden Journalists : Alan Dron, Brendan Gallagher, Tom Billinghurst.

Photographer : Liam Ritson Printed by : Manson Group If you have a story to tell at the SportAccord Convention then the SportAccord Daily wants to hear from you. The newspaper will be published every day this week and circulated at the event. It’s your event newspaper, so let us know what your organisation is doing. The daily team is located in the Media Centre on the 15th floor of the hotel. Drop in or call Mike Martin on 07585 136676.

The Convention Daily is printed on recycled paper.

More evidence of “why sport matters” can be found in conversation with Nick Keller, of the London-based organisation Beyond Sport. The sporting engine that Keller created more than three years ago has travelled great distances along global roads that lead to positive social change.

He saw the connection between sport and philanthropy, and decided to create Beyond Sport under the precept that sport has the ability to affect big issues such as education, conflict resolution, and social exclusion across diverse demographics, from Brooklyn, USA to Panyee, Thailand.

“Sport is a vehicle for social development,” he said at the SportAccord Convention yesterday.

“Beyond Sport is based on a lot of my own experiences.

As a kid, I felt academically excluded. But through sport I found the confidence I was lacking elsewhere. Eventually, I learned to apply the discipline and motivation I developed through sport to education, and I found a way through life that way.”

With the belief that people young and old around the world have an innate propensity to benefit from sport in the same way that he did, Keller says conventions like the Beyond Sport Summit – soon to be arriving in Cape Town for its third annual gathering – and the SportAccord Convention, are the medium par excellence for transforming philanthropic energies into actions when it comes to challenging the big issues.

Keller says the Beyond Sport Summits, following in the footsteps of the SportAccord Convention, have “bought together an amazing, eclectic mix of sports, personalities, and countries. From there we can challenge diverse social issues; we are allowing sport to play a major role.”

Ruminating on Beyond Sport’s inaugural London Summit in 2009, Archbishop Desmond Tutu said “I’ve witnessed first-hand the power sport can have on communities and to see so many people in one room talking about how they can use this power for good was a humbling moment. Beyond Sport can achieve great things.”

With the theme of Why Sport Matters at this week’s SportAccord Convention, Keller explained: “Sport brings values and ethics. When deployed at the right time such virtues can be a really effective way of procuring social development. Sport has an innate humanistic quality.

He added: “Its emotional resonance makes it very easy to engage in: people are very passionate about sport.

THE RYDER CUP HERE TODAY One of the world’s most iconic trophies makes an appearance at the SportAccord Convention today. The Ryder Cup will be on the ‘Scotland the Perfect Stage’ stand to mark the fact that Scotland will play host to the competition in 2014 on the PGA Centenary Course at Gleneagles.

Paul Bush OBE, Chief Operating Officer at EventScotland, said yesterday: “As we move towards the delivery of The Ryder Cup in 2014, all parties involved have a clear goal of doing our best to make this the most memorable Ryder Cup yet.”

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“It is certainly no surprise, that two statesmen such as Tony Blair and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who are ingrained in world issues, both recognise sport as a serious catalyst for social change, and therefore are ambassadors of our project.

Keller pointed to social upheavals in the Middle East and natural disasters in the Asia Pacific region and that sport can have an important role in these crisis hotspots in future.

“Where there are natural disasters occurring, they are a huge number of displaced peoples. Nothing, of course, can ever replace the gaping hole left by natural devastation, but sport can play a role in rehabilitation and creating a new sense of family and unity.”

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BEYOND SPORT AWARDS Beyond Sport’s Awards process has bought together an eclectic mix of sports and personalities, from over 135 countries.

More than 400 organisations enter the scheme, competing for 12 categories which cover the sporting gamut from health to social responsibility.

The winners of the Beyond Sport Community Awards receive a minimum of $15,000 funding each.

In partnership with the SportAccord association, the ‘Sport Federation of the Year Award’, is one of the most prestigious categories in the Beyond Sport Awards format.

Keller said: “Working alongside SportAccord enables us to reach out to federations we wouldn’t be able to access as easily otherwise. It has helped us ingratiate ourselves into the federation network.” ■

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LAWYERS DEBATE MATCHFIXING REMEDIES Yesterday’s LawAccord International Convention at the Park Plaza County Hall revealed the existence of tensions between sports governing bodies and the law-enforcement agencies in the battle against match-fixing.

During a debate on the case for creating an international body comparable with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to tackle match-fixing, panellist Jonathan Taylor of UK-based international law firm Bird & Bird declared: “This is a corrupt, criminal, clandestine behaviour by people who often come from outside the sport, and so are not subject to its laws. In such cases sports administrators can’t be law-enforcers – they have to go to the professional fulltime agencies.”

But he pointed out that this was sometimes more easily said than done. “When this happens, the public authorities have to trust the sports bodies, particularly in the matter of information exchange – and in the past some have not always proved worthy of trust in this respect.”

Referring to the recent cricket spot-betting scandal involving three Pakistani players, Taylor said: “There was huge pressure for a quick response. The police wanted to step in and push the sports bodies aside. But the latter had their own robust rules that allowed them to act quickly within eight days and in fact much faster than the criminal authorities could have.”

He continued: “In general the sports bodies have good reason to complain not only about the slow processes of the criminal authorities but also their reluctance to share information.”

Panellist Dan Cooper, from US law firm Covington & Burling, supported the idea of an international body to combat gambling abuses. “Among other things, it could promote moves towards standardisation of law-making in connection with gambling on sport,” he said.

“In an example of what go wrong when practice varies widely, a British citizen travelling in the USA was recently hauled off a flight because of his association with online betting, which is legal in the UK but banned in some US states. An international body of the kind mooted today could help by developing best practice for consideration by national jurisdictions.”

But the proposal found no favour with delegate Simon Gardner, who runs a post-graduate course in sports law and administration at the UK’s Leeds Metropolitan University.

“I’m against the proposition,” he said. “There’s ample evidence of the ability of the sports authorities to deal with abuses like match-fixing. The notion of a private justice system to counter corruption in sport is not the answer – improved co-operation by the sports bodies and public authorities is probably the better way.”

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QUEBEC OPENS ITS DOORS The international sporting community’s eyes will be opened to the beauty of Quebec’s natural landscape when it plays host to the 2012 SportAccord Convention, said Régis Labeaume, Mayor of Quebec, speaking at the SportAccord Convention yesterday.

“I am inviting everybody to come to Quebec. Its beauty must be discovered. It is Europe in North America, and we have the best of both in one place,” he said.

“When we bring exciting events to the city like the next year’s SportAccord Convention and the 2011 Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) World Tour, the sports community will see what a great place Quebec is.”

While acknowledging the lucrative economic significance of sport, the Quebec Mayor is just as keen to welcome the modern sporting world into his city because of its ability to galvanize a populace.

And with the imminent construction of a new multi-purpose “sporting amphitheatre”, the Canadian zeitgeist for sport is likely to reach fever-pitch. There is also the incentive of a having a new National Hockey League team – the first in 16 years.

“We decided a month ago that we would build a multi-functional amphitheatre for sport. Everything is in place now and ready for development.”

Labeaume feels that although they “have no guarantee that we will get a new hockey team,” the construction is still a very worthwhile investment, as it will only enhance the city’s sporting infrastructure.

The excitement about a possible new ice hockey team in Quebec is undeniable.

“The people go crazy for hockey,” Labeaume elucidated. “As an example, 60,000 people gathered last fall to demonstrate how passionate they are about bringing a team to the city.”

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David Howman, Secretary General of the World Anti-Doping Agency, who chaired a LawAccord session.

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LIFE WILL BE A BEACH AT NEW GAMES Time and tide are flowing in favour of the latest addition to the global sporting scene – the SportAccord World Beach Games.

A little more than 18 months from now young people from all over the world are due to assemble for a sports festival with a difference. The events will be beach-centric, and the contestants will be encouraged to preach the message of social and environmental sustainability when they go home afterwards.

“The SportAccord World Beach Games will be entertaining, trend-setting, dynamic – and sustainable,” says SportAccord president Hein Verbruggen. “These games will be delivered in a way that makes social, economic and environmental sense for local businesses, communities and individuals. They will present unique opportunities for potential host cities.”

The inaugural edition will feature nine days of top-level competition and an extensive programme of festival and lifestyle events. A total of eleven international federations will send athletes to compete for medals in beach volleyball, tennis, handball, soccer and rugby, 3on3 basketball, catamaran sailing, windsurfing, kite-boarding, surfing and aquathon.

Held here on Sunday, the second SportAccord World Beach Games Plenary Session confirmed the number of participating athletes and technical officials and set a preliminary competition schedule. The federations and

SportAccord also discussed a number of side projects relating to sustainability, anti-doping and new media.

“The World Beach Games are a great initiative,” comments Florian Wanninger, communications director for basketball body FIBA. “For us they offer an opportunity to promote our new 3on3 format.”

Adds Philippe Bourdarias, tournaments manager for the International Rugby Board: “Beach rugby is a way for people to enter the game – that’s why we want to showcase it to a worldwide public.”

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BETTING ON A BETTER BALANCE With sports betting a global business worth an estimated US$350 billion per year, the sports movement is faced with a complex situation: On the one hand, match fixing scandals that continue to rock certain segments of world sport and on the other hand, legal and regular betting offered by national lotteries and private entities, which is a major source of financing for sport.

SportAccord has recognised that urgent preventative measures are required and has launched, with the support of the World and European Lotteries, a global Sports Betting Integrity Education Programme.

The Education Programme is aimed at raising awareness amongst athletes, their entourage and referees and assists international sports federations in fulfilling recommendations related to sports betting adopted by the IOC in June 2010.

“The Sports Betting Integrity Education Programme is about minimising risk and reducing reputation damage”, explained Hein Verbruggen, President of SportAccord. “We are confronted with a global phenomena with criminal, ethical, legal and socio-political elements. We need to ensure that those athletes and sports officials who may be tempted to manipulate sports results for financial gain, or to place unethical bets, do not do so.” ■

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DAILY NEWS OVERCOMING DISASTER TO BECOME MAINSTREAM Setsuo Nakamura, President of the International Federation of Cheerleading (IFC), has told of living through the nightmare of the tragic earthquake and tsunami that devastated eastern Japan.

Staff at Tokyo-based IFC – the organisation is participating at the SportAccord Convention for the first time to show how it has evolved from a support activity for other sports to a competitive sport in its own right – were stunned at the extent of the disaster.

“We felt lucky to escape with only our nerves rattled and minor damage to our office after the powerful earthquake and aftershocks of 11 March,” said Nakamura. “After the initial earthquake struck we followed the news on TV and the internet. We looked on in horror and disbelief as the tsunami left a trail of destruction in northeast Japan.

“In the days following there were a number of aftershocks that kept us on edge and there were disruptions to our normal working patterns. But

LONDON 2012 PROGRESSING WELL International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Jacques Rogge yesterday expressed himself “very pleased at progress” for the London 2012 Games and said preparations for the 2016 Rio event were “progressing extremely well”.

Arrangements for the 2014 Nanjing Youth Olympic Games were also moving ahead well.

He was addressing the joint meeting of the IOC Executive Board with the Summer Olympic International Federations.

Rogge said that the Olympic movement was looking again at the current ‘caps’ on numbers of sports, events and competitors for summer Olympics to see if these were still appropriate. A commission was launched in 2003 to monitor the direction and size of the games; the “most difficult” of the 117 recommendations had been one setting a limit on the numbers of sports, events and athletes at the event.

These limits would remain in place until 2020, said Rogge, but he had asked the IOC to look again at the recommendations of the 2003 study to see which remained useful, which should be deleted and whether any new ones should be included.

On plans for a new ‘dot sport’ high-level internet domain, he said that both the IOC and most Olympic associations had decided against adopting this. It would now be up to SportAccord if it wanted to take the matter further.

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those disruptions are marginal when compared to the thousands of lives and livelihoods that have been devastated by the disaster.”

Responding to the tragedy, the Foundation of Japan Cheerleading Association will organise donation activities for the Japanese Red Cross at all its championships this year.

Although historically associated with the US, competitive cheerleading was already well-developed across the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania, said Nakamura.

Cheerleading contests were increasingly adding value and drawing in more spectators, he added.

The 5th Cheerleading World Championships 2009 in Bremen, Germany attracted more than 10,000 spectators and such events were increasingly winning television coverage.

“Cheerleaders have to master difficult and demanding athletic techniques and the skills involved in cheerleading leave no doubt that cheerleaders are exceptional athletes,” said Nakamura.

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GROWING THE GLOBAL GAME The International Rugby Board (IRB) Rugby World Cup is one of the world’s largest sport events. The 2011 tournament will be hosted in New Zealand bringing together the people of New Zealand and over 85,000 visiting fans for a nationwide festival of world class rugby and culture as 20 teams compete to lift the prestigious Webb Ellis Cup. The IRB is promoting the Rugby World Cup 2011(RWC 2011) Observer Programme which will be run in conjunction with tournament organiser Rugby New Zealand 2011 and the Government agency New Zealand 2011. IRB Chairman Bernard Lapasset looks ahead to the event.

Why is the Rugby World Cup so important to the global growth of rugby?

The Rugby World Cup is the financial engine of the International Rugby Board.

The financial success of the tournament has allowed the IRB to be at the forefront of rugby development, enabling it to fund the development of the Game worldwide.

The IRB’s primary objective is to have more people playing, officiating, administering and enjoying rugby across the world. To emphasise the impact of RWC, the playing population across the world has increased from two million to over three and a half million in the past 10 years.

Rugby is experiencing unprecedented global growth in participation, interest and support and the Rugby World Cup has been at the heart of this growth.

RWC 2003 generated a surplus of £64.3 million while RWC 2007 recorded a surplus of £122.4 million. Both tournaments have underwritten unprecedented investment in the Game.

The RWC 2007 net surplus has already been committed by the IRB to underwrite major funding initiatives, including annual Union grants and the Strategic Investment Programme. In the years between RWC tournaments this underwrites specific development programmes to increase the competitiveness of the global Game and promote the best-possible player welfare, training and education standards.

For further information on the development of the global Game, please visit www.irb.com How will future hosts learn from the RWC 2011 experience?

In 2009 the IRB Council awarded two Rugby World Cup tournaments simultaneously for the first time, with England awarded RWC 2015 and Japan awarded RWC 2019. This long-term strategy means the IRB can create a balance between the commercial opportunities provided by staging a tournament in an established rugby market

Bernard Lapasset, LRB Chairman

and the wider development of the Game with a RWC in a developing market.

Representatives from England Rugby 2015 and the Japan Rugby Football Union will attend RWC 2011 as we host the largest and most innovative RWC Observer Programme to date. The Programme will provide a unique insight into the bidding, delivery, hosting and legacy of the world’s third largest sporting event.

The Programme will involve all major stakeholders and we are delighted to be partnering the New Zealand Government who can provide a fascinating insight into the role that Governments play in the delivery of major events including Regional showcasing, festival development, economic impact, financial support and engaging a nation.

For further information on the RWC Observers Programme, please visit www.rugbyworldcup.com ■

TOP OF THE SUSTAINABILITY HILL When Lord Coe delivered his status report on preparations for next year’s Olympics here on Monday, there were no takers at question time. “I think we can take that as an expression of confidence,” commented International Olympic Committee executive board member Denis Oswald.

Among the top contractors helping to maintain the momentum is Colorado-headquartered CH2M HILL. A member of the CLM Olympic delivery consortium, the company specialises in design, construction, operations, maintenance and programme management services for the sport, energy, water, transport, environmental and nuclear sectors.

Jacqueline Rast, president of the facilities and infrastructure division, is here to talk about the company’s record on safety, efficiency and sustainability in the campaign to bring the 2012 Games in on time and budget.

“We’re responsible for delivering the venues and infrastructure for the Olympic Park, and ensuring all participants meet the many sustainability objectives that have been set for the programme,” she says.

“When we work on large sports programmes we like to think beyond the event, towards using resources wisely and supporting our clients and their communities throughout the lifecycle with future generations in mind.”

London 2012 is CH2M HILL’s sixth Olympics.

“We’ve also supported the SportAccord Convention

since 2009, when we partnered host city Denver,” says Rast. “Last year we were the official sustainability and legacy partner for the event in Dubai, and this year we’re performing the same role here in London. Our message for the convention is that sport can be a catalyst that makes cities truly great and sustainable.”

She continues: “If a city commits during the bid phase to creating a post-games legacy, major sports events can be used to regenerate neighbourhoods, improve housing and quality of life for residents, create jobs and initiate a step change in transport infrastructure, promote tourism and attract investment.

Our experts can help cities to achieve these objectives, particularly in relation to the infrastructure.”

The company’s activities in the British capital go beyond the Olympics. “We’re working with a number of other London clients to advance the city’s commitment to developing sustainable infrastructure for programmes such as the London Tideway Tunnels and the multi-billion-pound Crossrail,” says Rast.

Preparing the ground for an Olympic and Paralympic Games typically requires the development of additional provision for energy, water supply, transport and facilities, and in some cases environmental clean-up and remediation. “We know how to deliver all the pieces that are needed to make a games a great success, and to provide a infrastructure that works and supports continued economic growth afterwards,” Rast concludes.

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FACE TO FACE, WITH BARONESS CAMPBELL, CHAIR OF UK SPORT UK Sport is the organisational powerhouse behind elite British sport. Wielding a budget of £100 million a year, the organisation is headed by Baroness Campbell of Loughborough, CBE, who talks to the Convention Daily about the strategy she has pursued since taking over as Chair in 2003, about the pursuit of excellence and why sport matters.

Convention Daily: What were your objectives when you took over UK Sport in 2003?

Baroness Campbell: When I took over as Chair of UK Sport I had a remit to make whatever changes were necessary to make British sport more successful at an elite level. What I began by asking myself was; how do we best support our elite athletes and the people who support them, the coaches, physiotherapists, performance directors? I wanted to ensure that British elite athletes were amongst the best supported in the world. My ambition was that, although the athlete would still be at the centre of every decision we made, what we would actually be investing in and improving on was the high performance system here in the UK. Convention Daily: How has UK Sport changed since you took over?

Baroness Campbell: I think that one key change since 2003 is that we are now a lot clearer on what it is we are responsible for. One thing that we do not tolerate here at UK Sport is duplication. Sustained British sporting success at world level is too important and difficult to maintain if people and organisations spend time working on the same areas, arguing about responsibilities and who does what.

Today, it is much clearer what we do; we are the UK’s high performance sport agency. We are responsible for ensuring British success at future Olympic and Paralympic Games. We are responsible for supporting the bidding for

and staging of major sporting events in this country and we have a responsibility to ensure that the power of sport here in Britain is used across the world to help effect change.

Convention Daily: UK Sport is very focused on performance in terms of medal tallies, etc. How does that philosophy affect your investment decisions?

Baroness Campbell: Clearly our investment decisions are built on rewarding success but it is not just about winning medals. It is about building a world-class system that will be sustainable and help produce British champions for years to come.

Convention Daily: Can you outline the highlights of the past year in UK Sport?

Baroness Campbell: Three areas come to mind. The first was the outcome of the Comprehensive Spending Review which, for elite sport in this country was largely positive, in what are very tough economic times. Another highlight was the success of our major events programme. We helped to bring 23 world class major sporting events to the UK throughout 2010, this is more than we have ever supported before. Finally and the most important highlight for me was just how good a year for British Olympic and Paralympic Sport 2010 was.

Convention Daily: Your performance-based philosophy has been distilled into the highly-focused Mission 2012 programme in support of the Olympics and Paralympics: describe Mission 2012?

Baroness Campbell: Mission 2012 is a system we use at UK Sport that helps us to track the current state of play across all Olympic and Paralympic sports in their preparations for London 2012. We work closely with all sports and they highlight to us their progress, flagging any potential issues or successes they might be having. They submit their findings to us three times a year and it gives us the opportunity to look at the entire high performance system to identify any trends that may be occurring and also to show us which sports may require assistance.

Convention Daily: Have you set a target in terms of medals to be won at the Olympics or a ranking in the medal table? If so, what is it?

Baroness Campbell: Not yet. UK Sport will be announcing the medal targets for 2012 at around this time next year, but we do have a high level target of top four in the Olympic Games and second in the Paralympic Games, winning more medals across more sports. It is incredible when you think of how far we have come as a nation from where we were in Atlanta, where we finished 36th in the medal table, that we are now able to say with some confidence we are aiming for a top four finish at our Home Games.

Convention Daily: Can you describe UK Sport’s international development programme?

Baroness Campbell: Through our International Development programme at UK Sport, we aim to develop a small number of long-term strategic partners, with UK based and international NGOs to further the use of sport as a tool for human and social development. I have always been a passionate and persuasive advocate for the power of sport. I believe in it. I’ve seen it with my own eyes; kids sitting on that wayward edge are pulled back by this thing called sport. Perhaps only music and sport can speak to kids in that way and being able to use it as a tool both in this country and across the world is something that I passionately believe in. The international inspiration programme, the official legacy programme of London 2012 is a great example, of how we can use sport as a power for good across the world. It’s already reached over seven million children in 15 different countries across the world.

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AUSTRALIA’S EVENTS ‘LEGACY’ SHOWCASED AT THE CONVENTION Australia has a lot of Olympic gold under its belt, but its strong sporting events expertise off the field will be the focus for those attending the SportAccord Convention.

The Australian Trade Commission’s London-based Senior Business Development Manager responsible for Olympic Games, Colin Biggs said Australia’s sports event expertise easily matched its successes on the field.

“Australia certainly hasn’t rested on its laurels after Sydney 2000 Olympics,” he said. “Our event experts and companies have worked with the organisers of more than 24 major sporting events around the world, including Beijing and Vancouver and recent Olympics contracts for London 2012 and the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics,” said Biggs.

He added: “I think the value that Australian companies can offer nations looking to hold world class events is that Australians have really leveraged the Sydney Olympics legacy and have genuine skills in ‘pathway’ events.”

The Commission, together with the Australian International Sporting Events Secretariat (see story in Convention Daily, Issue 1), will be holding roundtables on special topics of relevance to games organisers at SportAccord this week.

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DAILY NEWS QATAR GETS TO THE HUB OF IT

Putting the final touch Antonio Castro, left, receives a VIP ticket to the 2012 Helsinki European Athletic Championships after winning the Finland Sport putting competition at the London SportAccord Convention.

The competition will be running over the next two days. Putt three golf balls into three different holes and win a VIP tickets to the Helsinki 2012 Ice Hockey Championships.

Qatar is a small country with big sporting ambitions.

Having staged the 2006 Asian Games, it is rapidly expanding its sporting interests.

It achieved a new level of worldwide prominence late last year when it was awarded the 2022 soccer World Cup. The Gulf nation will build new stadia for this event, and says it will dismantle most of them after the competition and donate them to other nations.

It is at the SportAccord Convention to showcase its qualities.

“Sport is a way of reaching out to the world and the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) is determined that Qatar should become universally recognised as the sports hub and a major destination for world-class events in all sports,” said HE Sheikh Saoud Bin Abdulrahman AlThani, the committee’s Secretary-General.

“Participating in the London SportAccord Convention is a way to demonstrate Qatar’s ongoing commitment in working closely with international organisations to host and support major sporting events.

“QOC plays the central role of delivering sport and the opportunity to take part in sport to the people of Qatar and the world. Its responsibilities range from the provision of community and grass-roots sports programmes to constructing and maintaining the facilities that host sports events at the community and international levels.”

Qatar now hosts no fewer than 27 major events ranging from golf and tennis to marine sports said Sheikh Saoud.

Among major contests to be staged this year are the Arab Games and the AFC Football Asian Cup as well as noncompetitive events such as the 9th World Conference on

Sport and the Environment.

The “incredible success” of 2009 and 2010’s volleyball Men’s World Club Championship has seen the FIVB organising body award Doha, the Qatari capital, the rights to host the Men’s and Women’s Club World Volleyball Championships for three years in a row, he added.

“What makes Qatar different is that it pushes the boundaries,” said Sheikh Saoud. It was prepared to be unconventional and create new concepts as it pushed forward into the future.

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WHY SPORT MATTERS AT THE MEDELLIN 2010 SOUTH AMERICAN GAMES John Siner is the owner of “Why Sport Matters”, a media company which focuses on the unique impact sport has on society and culture around the world. Along with video testimonials during the sessions and on SportAccord TV, each day here in the Daily newspaper John also gives us a personal account from some of his global travels. More information is found on his website www.whysportmatters.com.

It was as recent as 20 years ago that Colombia was recognised as the most dangerous place in the world, a by-product of the narco-traffic warlords who ran their empires from the protected mountainsides of the country.

The notorious Medellin drug cartel headed by the infamous Pablo Escobar paralyzed the city of Medellin in fear and violence. The authorities eventually caught up with Escobar, and things have since changed in Colombia. But most of the world is not aware.

City leaders in Medellin recognised that hosting an international sport event would bring media attention that could serve as a voice for the city’s resurrection.

In 2006, Medellin presented their bid and convinced the ODESUR (South American Games Confederation) to allow them to host the 2010 South American Games, the biggest multi-sport competition for the continent that takes place every four years.

The Games presented a huge opportunity to not only promote the city, but also serve as a catalyst to bring about change for its citizens. And that’s exactly how Games organisers planned and operated the event. We were fortunate to be in Medellin to cover the Games as media to see first-hand how the Games were changing the city, including: ■ Situating the Athlete’s Village in the middle of one of the poorest sections of the city, where all of the new apartments transitioned to local residents after the Games.

■ Constructing a modern cable car system from the Athlete’s Village high on the hill down to the city below, allow-

ing an easier commute for citizens that was arduous before.

■ Building venues with legacy in mind in order to promote community sport and public health initiatives, and create new job opportunities.

■ Making entry to all the events free to the public, creating a new spirit of public gathering and social cohesion.

We caught up with Alicia Vargas, the CEO of the Games who explained: “We designed the Games with the participation of the people. We asked them what they wanted, and we built it to transform the city in all aspects, from security, to mobility and overall quality of life. That is why we would build the Athlete’s Village in a slum, to use sport to replace people’s fear from our violent past. These Games were not about winning medals, but about the inclusion of the people.”

Thanks in part to the Medellin Games, Colombia has a bright future for hosting

sport events, which includes the FIFA under-20 World Cup later this year. As we departed the country from the international airport, the promotional signs on

the walls read “Colombia: the Only Risk is Wanting to Stay.” And that was exactly how we felt.

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WANT TO CUT THROUGH THE COMPLEXITY OF GAMES PLANNING?

By Joel Finlay Global Head of KPMG’s Major Sporting Events Practice Major sporting events are a complex business. From the preparation of a Bid through to Legacy and wrap-up, all aspects of a Major Sporting Event must be carefully planned and rigorously integrated. But to be successful, games organisers must start planning early to properly manage the needs of all of the stakeholders; from the host city and national governments to games federations and international and national sports governing bodies. KPMG firms have the experience, insight and methodology to help cut through the complexity of Major Sporting Events to help planners achieve success.

KPMG member firms operate in 150 countries around the world; our firms are among the leading providers of tax, audit and advisory services. Our professionals have extensive hands-on experience in sport event operations and major infrastructure projects. And with a team that

Joel Finlay

includes infrastructure professionals, former elite athletes and past Organising Committee Senior Staff and Board members, KPMG’s Major Sporting Events team provides a blend of sport event industry expertise, and hands-on experience with

major sporting event operations and delivery.

KPMG has been intricately involved in many types of major sporting events, and has provided a wide range of professional services to organisations responsible for planning and staging major sporting events.

Our firms’ experience includes: more than a dozen Olympic Games; the Commonwealth Games and Pan American Games; the FIFA World Cup; the Asian Games; the Rugby World Cup; and the World Junior Hockey Championships.

We also have extensive experience supporting games events in centres around the world; from the more traditional centres of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the USA and Europe to a host of emerging economies such as South Africa, Russia, Brazil and China. KPMG professionals combine hands-on global experience with local insight and know-how to help planning committees to execute their events on time and on budget.

But to win bids for big events, Bid Committees and their supporters should focus on three critical components. The first is creating the right environment for a suc-

cessful Bid. This includes not only gaining public and government support. It also means working with various partners and stakeholders to define roles and responsibilities and to ascertain which requirements will require the most effort.

The second relates to planning. The organisations responsible for awarding a major sport event don’t just want to know your plans for delivering an event. They also need to know that you have the capacity, experience and support to successfully execute complex projects against strict timelines without exceeding budgets.

Finally, Bid Committees must show a keen understanding of the key interdependencies that underlie the delivery of a major sport event. An ability to demonstrate a firm grasp of the relationship between event, venues, infrastructure, security and operations must be clear within the context of the Bid Book.

As an exhibitor at the Sport Accord Convention, we look forward to meeting the wide variety of delegates and participants that share our passion for staging major sporting events.

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BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS FOR SUCCESSFUL DELIVERY Delivering a major multi-sport event takes time, planning, passion and – above all – strong partnerships, writes Charmaine Crooks, five-time Olympian and currently working with KPMG’s Global Infrastructure Practice.

In fact, from the campaign phase right through to the post-games wrap-up, almost every component of a major sporting event is delivered through partnerships. The formal partners include athletes, media, sponsors and sports associations, through to key stakeholders in government. Informal partners to be recognised include businesses, host city citizens and regional taxpayers, cultural groups and special interests.

Some partnerships are short-lived, providing services or support for one phase of the event. Other client groups, such as governments and the sports organisations themselves, demand long-term partnerships and have needs and perspectives that must be recognised at every stage.

So it’s increasingly important for event organisers to understand what is required to work with partners across the full lifecycle of the event. Four components that should be central to every partnership strategy.

Each partner must be clear about the scope, responsibilities and benefits of its participa-

tion. There should be structured cost-sharing agreements, evaluation metrics and release clauses to reduce risk and lay out a clear framework for engagement.

Most partnership problems can usually be traced to a failure in communications.

Organising committees need to ensure that open, clear and responsive lines of communication are available. A strategy for extensive media and community participation can also help to enhance communications, especially with the more informal partners.

Major events are big-ticket items with no room for overlap or unforeseen gaps.

Organising committees should pay close attention to the each partnership agreement to ensure that every requirement is addressed and that they are achieving the best return on their investment. Robust integration planning can often uncover opportunities for further partnerships or for existing partners to extend their work together.

From mergers and acquisitions to sudden market turmoil, many eventualities that arise during the course of a partnership agreement.

So agreements should include strong governance models and clear mechanisms for the resolution of issues to ensure that the unexpected does not affect the outcome of the games.

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SHORT WALKS FROM THE HOTEL - WESTMINSTER ABBEY At the end of a ten-minute stroll across Westminster Bridge, over the River Thames from the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge Hotel, stands the Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, colloquially known as Westminster Abbey.

The collegiate church is governed by the Dean and Chapter of Westminster, as established by Royal Charter of Queen Elizabeth I in 1560.

It is the traditional place of coronation since 1066. It is also the burial site for English, later British, and now monarchs of the Commonwealth Realms.

One of the most prominent Gothic buildings in Britain, with the medieval shrine of an Anglo-Saxon saint at its heart, Westminster Abbey is steeped in

more than a thousand years of history. In the tenth century Benedictine monks established a tradition of daily worship which continues today.

Westminster Abbey showcases the importance that a religious presence has in a modern secularised world. Its awe-inspiring architecture and subsistence in the London landscape foreground what Søren Kierkegaard suggested: ‘to elimate faith is to deify the established socio-political order’ – a notion upon which the British democratic system is founded.

The Abbey’s famous “poets’ corner” is the burial place of English writers, poets and playwrights; it is, according to T.S.Eliot’s epitaph ‘the place where ‘the communication of the dead is tongued with fire beyond the language of the living’.

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7 QUESTIONS OF SPORT WITH SERGEY BUBKA ■ What is your favourite sport?

It’s a very difficult question! But it’s athletics for me ■ Why is athletics your favourite sport?

Because it is linked to my personal passion for sport. I was able to develop my career in athletics with the pole vault, so this is why it’s special for me ■ What is your earliest sporting memory?

Basically, I can just remember always playing sport – wherever I was. Even in the street without any equipment or facilities. I played football and basketball when I could. I just found ways to play sport whenever I could.

Sport was always in my blood ■ What is your greatest sporting moment?

Tough question. My first victory in the Helsinki World Championships in 1983, and the 1988 Seoul Olympic games were very special for me. But probably most special is the Athens 1997 World Championships – after 8 months of a serious injury I came back to become world champion ■ Who is your sporting hero?

Viktor Saneyev, the triple jumper. He was the Olympic champion in ’68, ’72, ’76, and silver medal winner in 1980. Three gold and one silver medal in four Olympic

games is heroic. He was a great champion and personality ■ Why does sport matter?

For society it is important because you cannot find anything similar to sport that embraces everyone and brings people together to share a common passion.

It doesn’t matter where you’re from or what you do, sport brings you together.

Sport has real power to unite people,

and change their lives for good ■ What is your hope for sport in the future?

Well, I think that lots of kids are playing sport on their computers instead of physically doing sports. This is not good for health. My hope would be that sport can inspire people to become more healthy by getting them involved in playing more sports and promoting a healthier lifestyle.

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BY BOAT TO THE OPENING All aboard for the boat journey down the River Thames – destination, the O2 Arena last night for the opening ceremony of the SportAccord Convention.

Despite the blustery weather conditions, delegates braved the elements to make the short walk to the River Thames to board the vessel for the scenic passage downriver to the venue.

A buffet dinner preceded the show which included live excerpts from several major West End shows.

AVOIDING THE WHITE ELEPHANT TRAP How do you avoid creating a white elephant of a stadium when your event is finished? That was a question posed at SportAccord Convention City Forum 2011 yesterday.

One city which has faced the accusation of creating unused facilities is Athens, which staged the 2004 summer Olympics.

But while Spyros Capralos, President of the Hellenic Olympic Committee, explained to his audience, the games had led to major improvements in the life of Athenians.

While some of the facilities that had been built for the games had not been fully utilised, he admitted, the Games had “provided a unique opportunity to improve our infrastructure”. The city had benefited from two new metro lines, new trams, a bus fleet, even an airport. The result was that today “every Athenian saves 25 minutes going to work every day and the same amount of time going home”. That was a worthwhile benefit.

These wider-ranging benefits were also mentioned by Sheikh Saoud Bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, SecretaryGeneral of the Qatar Olympic Committee.

As well as the ‘hard legacy’ of stadiums there was a ‘soft legacy’ of people becom-

ing more physically active as they were caught up in the excitement of major events and took up sports. Physically fitter people meant fewer medical problems through their lives, he said, saving the state medical costs.

And there was no doubt that, since winning the 2022 soccer World Cup, many more people worldwide were now aware of Qatar’s existence, another intangible benefit.

To avoid creating white elephants, it was not necessary that every facility should be a permanent structure, he added.

But even when a building was labelled a white elephant, there was still hope, added Chris Roberts, leader of Greenwich Council in London, where some of the 2012 Games will be situated.

Greenwich is the site of the O2 Dome, the huge white semi-permanent structure that was the scene of last night’s SportsAccord Convention social event.

Commissioned to mark the millennium, it was grossly over-budget and berated as a waste of money. Now, however, said Roberts, it was the world’s best musical venue – demonstrating that any white elephant can be salvaged.