Logo Assembly Logo Hemicycle

Sports policies in times of crisis

Doc. 15426: compendium of written amendments | Doc. 15426 | 25/01/2022 | Final version

Compendium index

Amendment 1 Amendment 2 Amendment 3 Amendment 4 Amendment 5 Amendment 6 Amendment 7 Amendment 8

Caption: AdoptedRejectedWithdrawnNo electronic votes

ADraft Resolution

1The Covid-19 pandemic has completely disrupted the world of sport, which has been one of the sectors hardest hit by the restrictions imposed. The Parliamentary Assembly highlights the important part played by sport in the economic systems of the Council of Europe member States but above all its key role as a means of building social capital, its contribution to social inclusion and combating inequalities, its educational impact and, of course, its beneficial effects on health and quality of life.
2The Assembly welcomes the new text of the revised European Sports Charter of the Council of Europe, which states that access to sport for all is a fundamental right and asserts that all human beings have an inalienable right of access to sport in a healthy environment.

25 January 2022

Tabled by Mr Andrey EPISHIN, Mr Alexander BASHKIN, Mr Oleg ALEKSEEV, Mr Sergey KISLYAK, Mr Evgenii POPOV, Ms Irina RODNINA, Mr Vladimir KRUGLYI

Votes: 19 in favor 53 against 9 abstentions

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 2 with the following paragraph:

"The Assembly welcomes the international legal framework in the field of sports and emphasises that access to sport for all is of great importance."

Explanatory note

Access to sport is not mentioned among human rights in international documents.

3The recovery and sustainable development strategies, which are designed to rebuild better what has been destroyed by the crisis, should foster an appreciation of the value of sport and physical activity as factors for human development and personal and collective well-being and for social development and economic growth, taking due account of its links with other sectors such as health, education, tourism, construction, transport, media, retail and others. There is a need to highlight the leverage effect that promoting sport can have in all these sectors and to step up co-operation between public authorities and sports organisations to create conditions which foster active lifestyles and facilitate and normalise access to physical activity and sport.
4The flow of financial aid must not fuel corruption. The level of oversight should be raised and respect for the highest standards of integrity should be a prerequisite for the provision of financial support or support in kind for sport. Co-operation should be established between all stakeholders to ensure a consistent multi-stakeholder and multi-disciplinary approach and to fight corruption in sports competitions effectively.
5International sports governing bodies have a responsibility to seek out balanced, well thought-out solutions in response to public health and financial issues which cannot easily be reconciled. This must not be carried out in a way that is opaque, without listening carefully to all stakeholders. Qualification tournaments, the Olympic and Paralympic Games and other international competitions must take place safely: athletes and other people involved must not be forced to weigh their participation against their health and the health of others.
6To back up the financial recovery of the sport sector and increase the resilience of the sport system, solidarity mechanisms will have to be established and financial solidarity will have to be enhanced, operating between high-level and grassroots sport, and between different sports and across the world.

25 January 2022

Tabled by Mr Andrey EPISHIN, Mr Alexander BASHKIN, Mr Oleg ALEKSEEV, Mr Sergey KISLYAK, Mr Evgenii POPOV, Ms Irina RODNINA, Mr Vladimir KRUGLYI

Votes: 22 in favor 61 against 5 abstentions

In the draft resolution, delete paragraph 6.

Explanatory note

Concerns are raised by the term "financial solidarity" that can be used to create mechanisms to put an additional pressure on so called "objectionable" countries.

7The whole sports movement, from the top to the bottom, should learn lessons from the crisis, so as to evolve and modernise. Sports organisations and clubs should, in particular, gear their services even more to the needs of athletes and members. Digitisation could be a driving force in this regard. Various online tools provide ways for people to participate in sport remotely and to keep members involved. Digital transition needs to be integrated into provision strategies though this should not mean that proven models of in-person provision are abandoned.
8Among the joint responsibilities of the public authorities and the sports-governing bodies as major sports events progressively resume, particular attention should be paid to issues relating to spectator safety, security and services, based on the integrated approach advocated by the Council of Europe Convention on an Integrated Safety, Security and Service Approach at Football Matches and Other Sports Events (CETS No. 218, Saint Denis Convention). All member States should ratify it and all stakeholders in the sporting world should contribute to its implementation
9The Assembly also highlights the importance of getting fans and sportsmen and women more involved, through the intermediary of the organisations representing them, in all the stages of the decision-making process concerning sports events; their active involvement can only increase the legitimacy, understanding and observance of restrictive measures.

25 January 2022

Tabled by Mr Andrey EPISHIN, Mr Alexander BASHKIN, Mr Oleg ALEKSEEV, Mr Sergey KISLYAK, Mr Evgenii POPOV, Ms Irina RODNINA, Mr Vladimir KRUGLYI

Votes: 18 in favor 67 against 8 abstentions

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 9 with the following paragraph:

"The Assembly also highlights the importance of getting sportsmen and women more involved, through the intermediary of the organisations representing them, in the decision-making process concerning sports events, as appropriate and in accordance with national legislation; their active involvement may increase the legitimacy, understanding and observance of restrictive measures."

10Accordingly, the Assembly calls on the Council of Europe member States to:
10.1follow the principles and approaches of the revised European Sports Charter of the Council of Europe when devising and implementing legal and policy frameworks for sport;
10.2incorporate sport into recovery and resilience plans and mechanisms and to integrate sport support measures into economic and social sustainable development strategies, including smart specialisation strategies and regional or local development strategies, while ensuring that a fair share of the resources allocated to the sport sector – including at regional and local level – are used to support the recovery of grassroots sport; in this context, there is a need to:
10.2.1ensure that sport is eligible for any national funds and mechanisms that are set up to provide emergency aid and assistance;
10.2.2develop funding support schemes for sports organisations and clubs, paying particular attention to small grassroots clubs, and establishing simple and rapid procedures for accessing funding, relaxed eligibility requirements enabling as many potential recipients as possible to benefit and an assistance and advice service for small bodies; to ensure, in this context, that a fair share of the funds available goes to women’s sport;
10.2.3provide targeted funding for the most vulnerable people (athletes in difficulty, amateur athletes, volunteers) and, in the longer term, to consider other forms of support for athletes’ professional and personal development – ensuring that men and women can benefit from these on an equal footing – including mentoring, education and capacity building in key areas (for example media training, financial management, marketing, risk and career management), and to foster dual-career opportunities;

25 January 2022

Tabled by Mr Andrey EPISHIN, Mr Alexander BASHKIN, Mr Oleg ALEKSEEV, Mr Sergey KISLYAK, Mr Evgenii POPOV, Ms Irina RODNINA, Mr Vladimir KRUGLYI

Votes: 23 in favor 57 against 9 abstentions

In the draft resolution, paragraph 10.2.3, replace the words "the most vulnerable people (athletes in difficulty, amateur athletes, volunteers)" with the following words:

"people in vulnerable situations".

10.2.4promote the development of sports infrastructure and an environment conducive to sporting activities and physical exercise facilitating access to sport for all;
10.2.5help low-income families and their children to access sporting activities and to adopt measures to improve provision, aiming at the development of sports activities for health or activities geared to specific groups (such as sport prescribed by doctors or sports cheques to be distributed to people with more limited access to sport than others to be used to pay for subscriptions or one-off sporting activities); at the same time, to encourage sports-governing bodies and sport clubs to develop a range of activities geared to varying groups, while also aiming at the development of women’s sport;
10.2.6value sport and physical education in the context of education systems and to encourage sport and outdoor activities in the school curriculum during the pandemic measures and beyond;
10.3ratify, if they have not yet done so, the Council of Europe Convention on an Integrated Safety, Security and Service Approach at Football Matches and Other Sports Events (CETS No. 218, Saint-Denis Convention) and the Council of Europe Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions (CETS No. 215, Macolin Convention);
10.4adopt relevant standards and sanctions to uphold the integrity of sports competition against manipulation, to set up whistle-blowing mechanisms and to provide, in co-operation with sports organisations, awareness programmes and training in sports ethics and integrity; sponsorship of sport by the betting industry must be properly regulated and overseen, including provisions on conflicts of interest, responsible gambling, research and intelligence exchange, education and training;
10.5encourage, in co-operation with sports organisations, the active involvement of fans and athletes in all stages of the organisation of a sports event, in particular (but not only) with regard to the restrictions put in place to safeguard health and safety.

25 January 2022

Tabled by Mr Andrey EPISHIN, Mr Alexander BASHKIN, Mr Oleg ALEKSEEV, Mr Sergey KISLYAK, Mr Evgenii POPOV, Ms Irina RODNINA, Mr Vladimir KRUGLYI

Votes: 13 in favor 60 against 3 abstentions

In the draft resolution, replace paragraph 10.5 with the following paragraph:

"encourage, in co-operation with sports organisations, the active involvement of athletes in the organisation of a sports event, as appropriate and in accordance with national legislation, including with regard to the restrictions put in place to safeguard health and safety”.

11The Assembly invites the European institutions to ensure that the sport sector can benefit from the European Regional Development Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European Social Fund Plus, EU4Health and other EU financial instruments and to show solidarity, considering the possibility of broadening access for non-EU member States to the European funds available and developing transfrontier partnerships in the sporting sphere.

25 January 2022

Tabled by Mr Andrey EPISHIN, Mr Alexander BASHKIN, Mr Oleg ALEKSEEV, Mr Sergey KISLYAK, Mr Evgenii POPOV, Ms Irina RODNINA, Mr Vladimir KRUGLYI

Votes: 20 in favor 59 against 7 abstentions

In the draft resolution, delete paragraph 11.

12The Assembly calls on the International Olympic Committee and other international sport governing bodies to:
12.1conduct open, participatory and transparent decision-making processes on the continuation, cancellation or postponement of international sports competitions and the health rules imposed on athletes, including enhanced means for the media to follow decision-making processes closely;
12.2improve co-ordination when deciding on the calendar for major international sports competitions, ensuring that it is not overloaded;
12.3launch a real thought process on the mechanisms for financial solidarity between high-level and grassroots sport, between different sports and across the world, and to aim for a more balanced distribution of revenues from the sale of broadcasting rights;
12.4review model contracts (for example those with host cities and other venues for the staging of major international competitions or broadcasting contracts) in order to better anticipate and cover the risks that further waves of pandemic (or other similar threats) may create;

25 January 2022

Tabled by Mr Andrey EPISHIN, Mr Alexander BASHKIN, Mr Oleg ALEKSEEV, Mr Sergey KISLYAK, Mr Evgenii POPOV, Ms Irina RODNINA, Mr Vladimir KRUGLYI

Votes: 22 in favor 57 against 9 abstentions

In the draft resolution, delete paragraph 12.4.

12.5look into building financial safeguards and compensation mechanisms into the funding system of National Olympic Committees and sports federations so as to limit the impact of the cancellation or postponement of a major event on their financial stability and, for example to:
12.5.1give thought to creating reserve funds specific to each international federation and solidarity funds at the level of the major worldwide umbrella organisations, into which a minimum percentage of the revenue from each major event they organise would have to be paid, until the funds reach a certain level;
12.5.2consider setting up reserve funds at National Olympic Committees level by engaging in dialogue with national authorities which might promote and support this process;
12.5.3contemplate setting up collective insurance mechanisms, at least provisionally;
12.6draw up clear health guidelines and requirements for holding competitions in order to ensure effective protection of the health of the public, athletes and all other persons involved;

25 January 2022

Tabled by Ms Svetlana ZHUROVA, Mr Sergey KISLYAK, Mr Shamsail SARALIEV, Mr Oleg TSEPKIN, Mr Evgenii POPOV

Votes: 79 in favor 10 against 8 abstentions

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 12.6, insert the following paragraph:

"seek to ensure that athletes who have been vaccinated against pandemics, with vaccines available and recognised in their countries, can participate fully in international tournaments and competitions;"

12.7promote the sharing of experience and information on the effectiveness of the measures adopted with regard to, for example, health and safety requirements, training opportunities, athletes’ rights and duties during lockdown and accessing Covid-19 resources (for example, personal protective equipment or testing equipment);
12.8ensure that there is no discrimination on the grounds of nationality as regards access to training facilities, which should remain open to all competing athletes, whichever country they are from.