HRH Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein attended the two-day meeting of the IOC Athletes Commission held at the IOC headquarters in Lausanne (SUI) in her quality as a commission member. The meeting, which took place on 6 and 7 February, was a very fruitful one and dealt with issues such as the organisation of the second International Athletes Forum, preparations for the 13th Olympic Congress, the greater involvement of athletes in the organisation of the Olympic Games, the athletes’ career programme and the use of blogs by athletes during the Olympic Games.
The first edition of the International Athletes’ Forum was held in Lausanne in 2002 and brought together the representatives of all the Athletes Commissions around the world to discuss issues such as the fight against doping, self-marketing for athletes during and after their sporting careers and the further integration of professional athletes in the Olympic Movement. The second edition will be held in Dubai (UAE) in October. The FEI President is heavily involved in the organisation of the event.
HRH Princess Haya was appointed the athletes’ representative on the 2009 Congress Commission. The Commission, chaired by the IOC President, is in charge of the process that will lead to the 13th Olympic Congress to be held in Copenhagen (DEN) in September 2009. The aim of the Congress will be to bring together all the parties belonging to the Olympic Movement, to study the current running of the Movement and to define the main development axes for the future.
Initiated by the IOC Athletes’ Commission, the Athletes’ Career Programme was launched in February 2005 and is jointly managed by the IOC and Adecco, the world leader in human resources. Ideally, the athlete joins the programme as early as possible while still active. In a first and very important step, the programme assists athletes to define their professional goals. Once these are defined, athletes need to become aware that there may be need for additional education and training, or just to develop and refine skills needed to enter the workforce more prepared. Adecco then assists the athlete in contacting potential employers. So far, 1,000 athletes from 16 countries have found jobs thanks to the programme. 2007 is expected to be a break-through year with a further ten countries joining the project.
The use of blogs by athletes during the Olympic Games was also addressed. While freedom of speech is every athlete’s right, privacy is an important concern especially where the Olympic Village, in which athletes reside during the Olympic Games, is concerned. The IOC Athletes Commission is not against blogs, but is adamant that the code of conduct be respected.
The IOC Athletes Commission is composed of 19 members: 12 members are athletes participating in the Olympic Games elected by their peers and seven are appointed by the IOC President to ensure a faire balance in terms of gender, sport and region. In addition, a representative of the World Olympians Association and a representative of the International Paralympic Committee are ex-officio members. The Commission is currently chaired by Olympic Champion and world record breaker pole vaulter Sergey Bubka (UKR).
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