A two-day Workshop on Integrity in Sport, organised by the Security Committee of the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy (SC) in co-operation with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Criminal Police Organisation’s (Interpol) Project Stadia, kicked off yesterday, with the participation of many local and international sports organisations and bodies.
The opening ceremony was attended by HE the Secretary-General of the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) Jassim Rashid al-Buainain, head of the Advisory Unit of the Security Committee Brigadier Ibrahim Khalil al-Mohannadi, SC’s Executive Director of Security, member and secretary of the Security Committee of World Cup 2022 Col Mohamed Majid al-Sulaiti, Interpol’s assistant director for emerging crimes Jose De Romero, Director General of the Stadia Project, Falah Abdullah al-Dosari, and a number of heads and directors of local and international sports bodies and organisations.
In his remarks at the opening of the workshop, QOC’s Secretary-General affirmed Qatar’s longstanding relationship with sport that stretches over more than five decades. He said Qatar has hosted many sporting events at the continental and international levels, which have promoted the growth and development of sport in the country, adding that the workshop reflects Qatar’s interest in the importance of integrity in sport, stressing the keenness of the Olympic Committee to work and co-operate for the sport’s integrity.
Al-Buainain stressed the importance of the workshop and keenness on achieving its objectives through the regulations and laws stipulated to combat the factors that threaten the basic values of sport such as doping and corruption and to address and eliminate them.
He added that Qatar set up in 2012 Anti-Doping Lab Qatar, the first of its kind in the region, he added.
Al-Buainain pointed out that the QOC works with sports federations and its committees with the concerned bodies, especially the IOC and the Interpol to promote the management of sports movement and the dissemination of Olympic values based on excellence and respect, friendship, non-discrimination, tolerance, fair play and solidarity in order to provide a healthy environment suitable for sport competitions in various fields, as stipulated in the Olympic Charter.
He stressed that the QOC is keen to work and co-operate with all concerned in this regard in order to understand and identify effective ways to spread integrity in sport and achieve credibility at all levels, through the implementation of the agreement of the International Olympic Committee with Interpol.
For his part, al-Mohannadi said the workshop is being held in co-operation with the IOC and Interpol in the context of the efforts made through the partnership programme between Qatar represented by the SC and Interpol under the umbrella of the Project Stadia, which aims to build capacity and training for Qatar for other countries, adding performance standards for tasks that achieve the main objective are to provide a safe environment in the management of security and safety operations in general and sporting events in particular.
He pointed out that addressing the manipulation of the results of sports competitions and putting an end to corruption aspects that threaten the integrity of sport are the target of this workshop, which comes in light of what the world is witnessing in the penetration of competitive values in the field of sports.
He added that the workshop is part of a global capacity-building and training programme to help countries meet new challenges posed by competition manipulation, corruption and other threats to the safety of sport and thus working to strengthen co-operation between law enforcement agencies and partners represented by the Qatar Olympic Committee, sport associations and public authorities including the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Culture and Sport, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, and other participants from relevant institutions in the State, all of which have an active role in creating an environment to prevent crime in sport.
He added the workshop is part of capacity building programme in sports security, hoping to come out with good recommendations to promote integrity in sport, especially as Qatar is working to host World Cup 2022 with all related laws and regulations to ensure an ideal event that meets the highest ethics and integrity standards and the highest safety and security standards.
For his part, Interpol’s assistant director for emerging crimes Jose De Romero highlighted the importance of having a regulatory framework that provides guarantees for sport and ensures match fixing does not occur.
He said that Qatar enjoys a great global position in fighting such criminal activities and has a whole unit to fight corruption in sports and promote integrity.
He added that match fixing in sports is not easy, where the Interpol has held many initiatives to fight these crimes through focusing on preventing them and developing worldwide capacities.
He said this workshop organised by Qatar is part of Interpol’s programme to fight crimes related to sport.
He added that fighting this crime has to be done collectively through exchanging information between countries, establishing partnerships, setting an information network linked to all countries and co-ordinating with the Interpol on the matter.
He said Qatar’s hosting to this workshop comes part of its preparedness to host 2022 FIFA World Cup, where it has been greatly co-operating with Interpol resulting in the establishment of Project Stadia.
Senior Manager at Project Stadia Falah Abdulla al-Dosari said Project Stadia is funded by Qatar under the provision of a ten-year agreement to establish a centre for excellence in the safety and security of major events.
He added that Project Stadia directly supports Qatar and all member states of the Interpol in providing security services in major events, and will be a sustainable project to implement law around the world, even after 2022 FIFA World Cup.
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