IF Sports Forum 2009 in Lausanne (SUI)

LAUSANNE (SUI), FIG Office, November 20, 2009: Leaders in international sport were invited to Lausanne (SUI) for the annual International Federations Sports Forum, organised in 2009 by SportAccord. The event provides a platform where participants can debate a range of sport-related issues and attend workshops; this year’s topics focused on financial resources and youth and sport.

In an effort to fully develop the topic of youth and sport, organisers invited Jani Tanskanen (FIN), recently elected to the FIG Athletes’ Commission, to speak on the relationship between a federation and its athletes. Responsible for Artistic Gymnastics within his own federation, Tanskanen shared his experiences with a highly attentive audience.

As a former World Horizontal Bar Champion (1997 Lausanne), he stressed how important it is for sport education professionals to provide a solid education and tangible support for athletes as they evolve from their earliest years onward. He recalled the FIG Academies, a model institution that educates its educators. “There must be zero tolerance for coaches working without any recognised licence!” he declared, adding that while athletes in competition are responsible to their national and international federations in the areas of performance, discipline and conduct, they also have rights. Jani Tanskanen called for ongoing and transparent communication, which are essential to safety, development and a sense of solidarity among those in sport circles.

In an aside with the speaker, FIG President Prof. Bruno Grandi expressed his commitment to developing communication and placing greater importance on the role played by athletes, which he himself once was and without whom sport federations would be an unknown institution.

Jani Tanskanen took the opportunity of his stay in Lausanne to visit the FIG head office and meet with the staff prior to the first meeting of the new FIG Athletes Commission in January.