European Athletics President Svein Arne Hansen delivered the keynote speech at the Sport Integrity Global Alliance Forum in Lausanne, Switzerland on Wednesday (21).
The key theme of Hansen's keynote speech at the Good Governance Workshop was integrity and he outlined some of the measures he has taken in his three years as European Athletics President to rebuild trust in athletics and ensure faith in European Athletics.
'Integrity, both on the field of play and in how a sport organisation operates, is absolutely essential for maintaining the interest of participants, the public and the supporters we need in government and the commercial sector. A sport lacking credibility and the confidence it provides is at risk of losing relevance and fading away or even of abrupt failure,' said Hansen.
Hansen cited term limits on the Council, a commitment to gender equality, acknowledgement of the IAAF’s code of ethics and the creation of the European Athletics Court to deal with disputes as some of the constitutional changes he has instigated. He also emphasised the importance of social responsibility in order to remain relevant.
'On top of basic integrity, we in athletics, like every sport, have a set of key values, which in our case includes health and fitness, fair play, personal development, universal access, gender equity, social and environmental responsibility. These are a part of the attraction that a sport needs in order to be relevant, to grow and to develop,' he said.
In terms of the fight against doping, Hansen spoke at length about European Athletics’ landmark I Run Clean online anti-doping programme which was a mandatory step for athletes competing at the Gyor 2018 European Athletics U18 Championships.
'I am proud to report that it went perfectly. We did not have a single issue with the system or with athletes complaining about the burden having to learn to protect themselves,” he said. ”Our next steps will be to make it mandatory for participation our U20 and U23 championships next year and for all our events starting in 2020. This means that every elite athlete in Europe will have a values-based education on top of whatever the authorities in their country may or may not provide.
'But we will go further. We are already working on a unit the coaches and others who work with athletes. Eventually anyone who gets accredited to a European Athletics event will have had their awareness about all issues related to doping and other forms of cheating raised through I Run Clean.'
Hansen concluded his speech on an optimistic note and hopes the proactive measures taken by athletics will be an example of governance for other sporting federations to follow.
“If we can impact the culture of our sport and make doing the right thing the default, athletics will continue to succeed. The sport will maintain and increase its relevance to society and it will prosper. As I said, I am an optimist. I believe we can and must make this happen.
'It is my hope that some of the practical measures we are taking can be models for other organisations working within the framework of standards established by SIGA. Moreover, if there are possibilities to work together our door will be open.'