Athletes associations issue statement on corruption in sport

From: Play the Game
At a conference organised by UNI europa and the European Elite Athletes Association in Krakow, Poland in September, participants, representing 26 players associations approved a number of statements, including one on corruption in sport.

The following statements were approved by the conference for release:

Statement on corruption in sport

The members of the European Elite Athletes Association recognize and commend section C4, clause 44, of the Coubertin Action plan of the White Paper on Sport relating to “corruption, money laundering and other financial crime”.

Corruption, for the purposes of this statement, is defined as the misuse of entrusted power for personal gain, which may not necessarily be financial.

Corruption and conflicts of interest in sport have a substantial and negative impact on the position of the athlete. Therefore, the EU Athletes member associations call, in general, for more transparency and accountability in sport. Athletes associations are prepared to play a positive role in this effort but recognize that all actors in sport including federations and leagues must tackle this problem through the adoption and implementation of codes of ethics, and the establishment of effective ethics commissions and compliance systems as is the norm in other industries.