On Monday, 8 April, and Tuesday, 9 April, EASE travelled to the German Sport University in Cologne to attend and participate in the conference « Athlete’s Social Protection in Europe: Current Solutions and Future Needs. »
At this conference, experts and stakeholders from the worlds of sports governance, politics and academia were able to exchange views on this subject, outlining the strategies of their organisations and the prospects for development in this area.
Firstly, the project team presented its self-assessment tools for athletes and stakeholders, which aim to evaluate current national policies protecting athletes in Olympic sports against social risks.
This was followed by a « Solutions and Needs at National Level » discussion. Various organisations from the sports ecosystem, such as the German Federal Armed Forces, the DOSB, Athletes Germany, the Croatian, Portuguese, and Belgian Olympic Committee and the French Union of High-Performance Athletes, highlighted their efforts to support elite athletes and identify essential social protection measures.
The day ended with a panel on « Transnational Perspectives on Athletes’ Social Protection ». Representatives from the International Labour Organization (ILO), the World Players’ Association and the European Olympic Committees (EOC) discussed their involvement in social protection measures for athletes and explored opportunities for international coordination.
The conference provided crucial information on the social protection of athletes, contributing to the project’s objective of promoting integrity in Olympic sports.
EASE would like to thank all the conference participants and the project team for organising and hosting this event.
Let’s continue the dialogue on the social protection of athletes in Europe!