The awareness-raising workshop on Good Governance in Sport, co-organised by the Sports Department of the Council of Europe and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), with the support of the Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sport, was successfully held at the headquarters of the Hellenic Olympic Committee.
The event was addressed to the Sports Integrity and Sports Values Officers and the Chairmen of the Ethics Committees of the Sports Federations because they are the ones responsible for promoting integrity issues between those who govern and those who are governed.
The aim was to inform the sports community of our country about the IPACS ( International Partnership against Corruption in Sport) focusing on strengthening transparency, integrity and control mechanisms in Greek sport, through the presentation of the IPACS Benchmark (the set of integrity indicators) and relevant good practices.
The event was addressed by the Secretary General of Sport Mr. George Mavrotas, the Secretary General of the HOC Mr. Stefanos Chandakas, the Executive Secretary of EPAS Ms. Sophie Kwasny and the IOC's Ethics, Compliance and Governance Officer Ms. Camila Tort.
Specifically, the mission and actions of IPACS, the Reference Framework for Governance in Sport, as well as its five main dimensions: transparency, integrity, democracy, development and solidarity, and the mechanisms for controlling the financial aspects of the management of sports organisations were presented.
The programme concluded with the presentation of the main conclusions and the speech of the Secretary General of Sport, Mr.Mavrotas, who said: «We are honoured to be the first country to present the IPACS Benchmark. The Council of Europe, a predominantly value-centred organisation, is the most influential intergovernmental body in sport and a pioneer in this field. When it cooperates with the International Olympic Committee, the result is excellent, as in this case. However, the implementation belongs to all of us, the federations. Together, the EOC, the IOC and the IOC must protect sport from challenges. Good luck in implementing what has been agreed.».
The President of the National Olympic Academy, Demosthenes Tabakos, referred to ancient civilizations, saying that «sport was an integral part of cultural and religious celebrations, offering joy, unity and strengthening the brotherhood between people. Today, we are making collective efforts to restore sport to its rightful place, because it is a powerful means of education, empowerment and unity of society».
Finally, on behalf of the HOC, the member of the HOC and Chairman of the Sports and Environment Committee, Kostis Liarommatis, thanked for the excellent presentations and stressed: «Today's information was very useful and the messages very optimistic. Greece wants to preserve the Olympic ideals and I would like to stress that concepts such as excellence, non-corruption, fairness, ethics, integrity, credibility and rules are non-negotiable for us at the EOC. All stakeholders in Greece work together for a fair and just sport».
