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     "Mă aștept la  roluri mai mari pentru toate federațiile internaționale de pe Agenda 2020

    Președintele SportAccord Marius Vizer L. informatii despre gândurile sale cu privire la viitorul SportAccord jocuri multi-sportive, spectacol de revista saptamanala de sport United- SportAccord pentru toate federațiile sportive, Convenția SportAccord și Agenda 2020.

                         

1. What are the main challenges for the SportAccord Convention 2015?

The general strategy for the SportAccord Convention 2015 is to increase the capacity, complexity and the content of the event and to convert it into a ‘World Sports and Business Summit’ with participants from International Sport Federations, different sports organizations, international sport media, marketing companies, sport suppliers, business, arts, culture and science. We aim to create the perfect set up for all international communities of sport for engaging in the development of sport. ㅤ

2. There is a certain mistrust currently going on in Western Europe towards the idea of hosting the Games, at least the Winter Games. Do you face similar issues in finding host cities for the SportAccord Convention?

Taking into consideration the international geopolitical and economic instability in the different regions of the world today, it is not easy to always find the right organizer that meets all the conditions for organizing sports events. From another point of view, SportAccord is confronted with a certain strategic blockage due to the IOC Ethics Code with regards to the bid cities. “Under the current IOC Code of Ethics, any city/country with an active bid to host the OG within its territory is not permitted to organize, during the IOC bid process, any meeting with a significant number of IOС Members in attendance (i.e.SportAccord Convention.)” I consider that currently Russia is the country that makes the most significant investments in programs dedicated to the development of sport, not only at national but also at international level. Through these investments, Russia contributes to the progress of the national and international sports movement.

Through the international sport events, Russia creates as well a solid platform and mechanism which generates benefits for those international federations or sport organizations that organize events in Russia with a huge impact on the development of the international sport community.

I hope that in the future, once the geopolitical situation will be solved, Europe will become, alongside Russia, a pillar for sport and education through sport, assuming an important role in the organization and promotion of global sporting events. ㅤ

3. What is your stance regarding Oslo's withdrawal of the 2022 Winter Olympic race? ㅤ

I believe the withdrawal of Norway and the lack of European candidates for the Winter Olympics 2022 bid came as a consequence of the current economical situation and the mistrust of Europe in assuming the organization of global sporting events, which could involve financial and political risks, even though, I believe it should not be the case. Sport is a mental expression and a dynamo that generates trust and optimism in all crucial moments of the individual and of society. ㅤ

Sport must generate governance models and meanwhile models of social behaviour. While evaluating the costs of organizing an event, nations should put in balance the profit, highlighting the educational and financial benefits, the promotion of the respective area, the transformation and modernization of the infrastructure and the social impact as well. ㅤ

4. ㅤWhat do you expect from Agenda 2020? ㅤ

The program that preceded the decisions to be made at the IOC session in Monaco in Decemberㅤ this year was very comprehensive and complex, with a very enthusiastic approach by all membersㅤ of the IOC community and sports community in general. It is a crucial moment for the future of the Olympic Movement. With the approval and promotion of the presented and analyzed topics, theㅤ IOC would become even more consolidated in terms of principles, rules and transparency for theㅤ benefit of the Olympic and international sports movement. It would also provide stronger andㅤ more adequate credibility of the Olympic Movement and the entire sport movement in the impact with society. ㅤ

What I am expecting personally are the following substantial changes:

1.). First of all, rules, criteria, transparency and fairness in all decisions.

2). Giving more possibilities to sports and athletes in order to obtain a similar number of medalsㅤ at a given edition of the Olympic Games.ㅤ

3). Simplification of the bid for candidate cities to reduce the costs and increase the efficiency

4). IOC membership to all international federations and the right for them to vote in all important decisions that impact the Movement.ㅤ

5). Decisions which always have a priority to serve the interest of the sport, not of other bodies or entities.

6). Increase in the role of the international federations.ㅤ

7). Offering SportAccord Convention the independent choice in selecting the host city for future editions of SportAccord Convention.

5. Do you consider that the IOC provides enough communications to promote the Olympic ideal in Europe?

More investments in ‘Sport for All’ activities from the IOC would also be an efficient way to communicate the importance of the Olympic values. I consider that the approach and messages addressed to the governments have to be also oriented and addressed to the population of a nation, who is the direct beneficiary of all cultural values, sport values and sport heritage. The media in every country have to be one of the main partners for the involvement and the motivation of all the social and age categories.ㅤ

 6. Several IFs worry about being negatively targeted by the reforms on the Olympic program. How do you defend them?

I would associate this situation to the model of state government or even macroeconomic administration models. Always, the reforms should bring added value and not diminished value. In order to improve the economical stability and reinforce the budgetary powers of a state, leaders usually call for tax increase, which brings certain restriction of the boost for economical progress. A viable solution, in my opinion, would be to encourage investments and reforms in order to make the economy more flexible. I believe the same principle should be applied in sports also. To enrich the Olympic Programme by adding to the existing sports diversity/variety in compliance with the current trend and demands of the young generation. On the same note, media should play a key role as partner of the Olympic Movement because media represents the most important means of transmission impact the sport has on society.ㅤMedia should have also an important role in the evaluation, selection and promotion of the sport discipline, becoming a laboratory and filter for the reforms of the sport.

7.Many IFs struggle to convince international media to cover their events. Do you think the IOC's Olympic TV project can be a good solution?

During the general assembly at the SAC 2013 in St. Petersburg, I had presented for the  first time the “Inside Media House” concept that is designed to serve the IFs in their media and marketing strategies. I am glad to learn that the IOC had  shown receptiveness and had the necessary background to get the project off the ground. I believe it is an important platform for the entire sports community. I am confident that the content and strategy we plan to apply will serve the demands and promotion of all sports federations. More comments will be revealed after the project is released, but at the same time, SportAccord will  also continue to work in order to achieve this objective.ㅤ In this respect, SportAccord signed an important partnership with Euronews, establishing a SportAccord weekly magazine that will include all SportAccord members, starting from the beginning of next year. The joint platform will give all the sports and international federations the possibility to have exposure of their main events and in the same time promote SportAccord and the values of sport for a large audience of 1.5 billion Euronews followers.

8. Where do you stand with your thematic sport events projects (Urban Games, Beach Games...)? Do you still plan to develop this project?

The four major multi-sports games: World Combat Games, World Mind Games, World Beach Games (we already have the project in final phase, as well as the  local organizer being open to organize our event in partnership with ANOC, according to their wishes and to the agreement which we already signed last year in the 2013 IF Forum) and World Urban Games represent a priority for our organization. We aim to develop and implement these concepts in accordance with the demands of the international federations as well as the receptivity and  capacity of certain geographical areas.   I  am convinced that France is a sporting country by excellence, owner of an impressive historical patrimony both in sports and in culture, with a sustained sports program, with a high level of human potential, complexity of education and sport development projects, with well-structured national federations, renowned athletes, a complex and unified national strategy, especially in the progress of unitary integration of various ethnic groups; with an enthusiastic spirit, potential to invest in infrastructur, a high ethical and fair‑play spirit, but all these values need an adequate voice in order to be properly expressed on the international scene. I observe a lack of global sports events that could stand as flag bearers of the values that I mentioned and that France really does have. The echo of these events in the international community would return to the nation as a form of gratitude for  their tax‑paying efforts, their own efforts and passion for sport, as well as the efforts of the public organizations for sport, health and prosperity of  the nation and for an optimistic future. ㅤ On the other hand, France does have to offer to the world sport movement a lot  more than it could absorb at present. France has all the conditions for organizing SportAccord multi‑game events with minimum costs but maximum impact on the national society and with an adequate message for the international community, in order to emphasize the role of France at international level, as sporting nation that contributes to the progress of humanity in all sectors.

SportAccord

Note: This interview was conducted by and published on the French website, www.francsjeux.com on November 19, 2014. The original French version of the interview can be found here.