[Source: Interkultur] Since 2013 the European Choir Games, the European Championships of Choral Singing has brought together choirs from across Europe and the world. During an 8-day festival of singing cities like Graz (Austria), Magdeburg (Germany), Riga (Latvia), and Gothenburg (Sweden) were already transformed in a big stage of international singing in recent years.

The success of the WCG is built on the expertise of the German-based organization INTERKULTUR, the world’s largest organizer of international choir competitions. INTERKULTUR´s biggest success to date was to bring the antique Olympic idea to the choral community. The World Choir Games 2000 in Linz, Austria was the beginning of a Choir Olympic movement and has developed into the world’s largest international choir competition in the world. The 11^th edition of the event has just closed in Flanders, Belgium on November 7. With the European Choir Games INTERKULTUR has transferred the idea to the European continent.

The event regularly brings together around 200 choirs and 8,000 participants from roughly 50 Europan nations and beyond – a unique opportunity to showcase the own city to the world!

There are still hosting opportunities for 2023 and 2025! If you’re interested to receive further information please contact host@europeanchoirgames.com and visit http://host.europeanchoirgames.com

WACH VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttYMndSr7lM

[Source: GAISF] The Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) General Assembly today elected Ivo Ferriani as its President representing the Association of International Olympic Winter Sports Federations (AIOWF).

Mr Ferriani begins his term as President immediately and will serve a two-year mandate, as per the GAISF Statutes and its stakeholder rotational principle where the nomination comes from the Association of International Olympic Winter Sports Federations (AIOWF).

Mr Ferriani brings with him a wealth of experience in sports administration, having served as AIOWF President since 2020, and President of the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation since 2010. He has also been an International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board Member since 2018.

In the lead up to the election, Mr Ferriani shared his plans for the future of GAISF, underlining his commitment to bringing the global sports community closer together for the benefit sport. Mr Ferriani praised GAISF for its tireless efforts to promote sustainability in sport and underlined how he will use his role as a Member of the IOC Sustainability and Legacy Commission to build on this progress.

As a Member of the IOC Women in Sport Commission, Mr Ferriani is committed to helping promote equal opportunities for girls and women in the global sports community to participate in, and benefit from, sport. Moreover, Mr Ferriani pledged to use his experience as a Member of the IOC Athletes’ Entourage Commission to introduce new initiatives directly involving and benefitting athletes. 

GAISF President Ferriani said: “I am very honoured to have been elected as President of GAISF. The COVID-19 pandemic has truly demonstrated how sport is a force for good. I am therefore proud to have this opportunity to work with the global sports community to promote the power of sport and to achieve our common goal of a better world through sport. I am very much looking forward to bringing my sporting experience to serve all GAISF’s Members, Associate Members and Observers, and to support them over the next two years.”

Following Mr Ferriani’s election, outgoing President of GAISF, Dr. Raffaele Chiulli, said: “My heartfelt congratulations go to Ivo Ferriani on his election as the new President of GAISF. I have no doubt he will continue to serve GAISF’s Members and all of sport to a high-level, and I can think of no better representative from the AIOWF family to lead GAISF for the next two years.”

“As the President of ARISF, and the representative of ARISF on the GAISF Council, I will have the pleasure of continuing to work closely with GAISF and its new President in the years ahead.”

There were a number of key updates delivered at the General Assembly, including on financial matters with the budget 2021 and audited accounts 2020 all being unanimously approved. Moreover, the GAISF family welcomed one new full Member, the International Practical Shooting Confederation, and two new Associate Members, the Association of Pan American Sports Confederations and World Martial Arts Masterships Committee, which all had their applications approved by the voting members.

[Source: INTERKULTUR] Thousands of spectators witnessed the unique atmosphere that characterizes the so-called "Olympic Games for Choirs!” digitally and live on site. The more than 300 choirs participating both virtually and live closed the World Choir Games solemnly on Sunday, November 7, during the Closing Ceremony at the Expo in Antwerp.

The Flemish edition stood out in particular for its inclusive character and innovative approach. In 2022, the 12th World Choir Games will be held in Gangneung, South Korea.

At the Closing Ceremony of the World Choir Games 2018 in South Africa, Flanders was announced as the next host region. These World Choir Games were to be the "most inclusive games ever" - a great challenge. For the past three years, the organization had been working on a large festival involving people from a wide range of backgrounds, with a focus on togetherness and solidarity.

Director Koenraad De Meulder looks back on the past edition with great pride: "What seemed almost impossible, we made possible with the 11th edition of the World Choir Games. To be able to sing again, to be on stage and to enjoy it together: that was a godsend. With the momentum of the 11th edition, we will now give even more people the chance to sing together."

Inclusion and Innovation

The World Choir Games have excelled in more than just inclusion. Covid-19 forced the organizers to drastically rethink the concept of the World Choir Games. For the first time in their history, the World Choir Games were held in a hybrid format. Thanks to the Virtual Village, choirs from all over the world were able to witness and even actively participate in the event.

In addition, the World Choir Games collaborated with IMEC to develop the Music Box. With this state-of-the-art technology, choirs from all over the world can sing together without delays and in optimal sound quality. Most meeting software is still inadequate for this purpose due to the delay in transmission.

"Due to Covid, these World Choir Games were of course the most unusual event the Choir Olympic movement has ever experienced," said INTERKULTUR President Günter Titsch.

"The Virtual Village and the virtual competitions were an excellent stopgap to allow all those to participate who could not travel themselves to see and enjoy the Games live here in Flanders. I am happy that so many international choirs took the opportunity to participate virtually, but I am especially proud of all the choirs who enchanted us with their beautiful music in the many fantastic concerts last week."

Musical Flanders

The World Choir Games were also a great success in musical terms. Despite Corona restrictions, more than 300 choirs participated live and digitally in the 11th edition of the event. The free-of-charge Friendship Concerts that took place outside the competitions also attracted hundreds or thousands of spectators.

"An unexpected success! What an atmosphere, what an emotion! With the singers at the shows and their competitions, but at least as much with the entire team, which has done an incredible job to make such a great international singing event possible in the current conditions. Warm-heartedness, togetherness and smiling faces - this is what I remember from the World Choir Games 2021 Flanders," said Sophie Detremmerie, COO of the World Choir Games 2021 Flanders.

"We have all experienced a unique and heart-warming event over the past 9 days. The World Choir Games have shown us the importance of this amateur art," said Luc Delrue, Secretary General of the Ministry of Culture. "We have once again given a stage to the many thousands of singers and choral enthusiasts. We have seen again the passion and the pure joy of making music together, of singing. And that was visibly good!"

Choral flame moves on to South Korea

After this 11th edition of the World Choir Games, Flanders will be on the list of former host regions together with cities like Bremen (Germany), Cincinnati (USA) and Sochi (Russia). INTERKULTUR organizes the World Choir Games every two years.

Due to the Corona crisis and the related restrictions, the Flemish edition of the singing festival was postponed for more than a year. Therefore, the next games will be held again as early as 2022. The South Korean coastal city of Gangneung takes over the choir flame from Antwerp and Ghent.

Taking place on an AI-enabled digital platform, this free-to-register conference is a fantastic opportunity for the major events sector to “Refresh, Regenerate and Reconnect”.
Following welcome addresses from Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events, VisitScotland, Bridget McConnell CBE, Chief Executive, Glasgow Life and Sir Craig Reedie KBE, Honorary Member, International Olympic Committee (IOC), delegates will be treated to an enticing programme of speakers and discussion.
Lord Sebastian Coe KBE, President, World Athletics and IOC Member gives a Keynote Address on the successful hosting of Tokyo 2020 and future trends in major events.
Etienne Thobois, CEO, Paris 2024 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games brings a Keynote Presentation on “Paris 2024 Games: a new model bringing people around sustainable Games with creativity”.
His counterpart at Milano Cortina 2026, Chief Executive Vincenzo Novari also gives a keynote update on preparations for the Winter Olympic Games.
Looking further ahead, Octavian Morariu, IOC Member, Chair, Future Host Commission for the Olympic Winter Games, IOC and President, Rugby Europe gives an exclusive insight into the process of engaging with future Olympic hosts.
Katie Sadleir, Chief Executive, Commonwealth Games Federation also gives a Keynote Address on Birmingham 2022 and beyond.
Host City 2021 also features Q&A sessions: IOC Executive Board Member Mikaela Cojuangco Jaworski speaks to Host City on engaging with next generation audiences; IOC Member Anita DeFrantz and LA28 Board Member talks about the Games coming to her city and the power of sports and events to break barriers; and Jamaican swimming champion Michael Gunning shares his own experiences of “Turning the tide of prejudice”.
Panel discussions at Host City 2021 feature extremely engaging speakers and topics. Dagmawit Girmay Berhane, Member, IOC, Andrew Ryan, Executive Director, ASOIF, Paul J. Foster, CEO, Global Esports Federation and Jon Dutton, Chief Executive, Rugby League World Cup 2021 consider “How has the pandemic changed the events sector?”.
Sam Ramsamy, Vice President, FINA – and close friend of Nelson Mandela – joins the IPC’s Rita van Driel, the CGF’s Brendan Williams and David Grevemberg CBE to discuss “Diversity and integrity in leadership”.
Trudy Lindblade, Chief Executive Officer, 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships and Martin Green CBE, Chief Creative Officer, Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games and UNBOXED: Creativity in the UK join on “Partnership approaches to event hosting”.
The question of “Broader casting – who owns the rights?” is taken on by Jamie Hindhaugh, Chief Operating Officer, BT Sport, Peter Hutton, Director of Sports Partnerships, Meta, Facebook and Jeff Foulser, Chairman, Sunset+Vine.
It’s not just about sports events either. Geoff Ellis CEO, DF Concerts, Francesca Hegyi OBE, Executive Director, Edinburgh International Festival and Susan Sawbridge, Manager, New Zealand Major Events share outlooks on “The return of live audiences, travel and tourism”.
Laura Lopez, Director, Conference Affairs, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and Aileen Crawford, Head of Conventions, Glasgow Convention Bureau speak on “The meetings industry in the post-pandemic world”.
Andrew Dixon, Chief Executive, Culture, Creativity, Place chairs a workshop on “Cities of Culture – changing places forever” with Shona McCarthy, Chief Executive, Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society, Prof. Jonothan Neelands, Academic Director for Cultural Partnerships, University of Warwick and Angus Farquhar, Creative Director, Dandelion.
Iain Edmondson, Director, Legacy Delivery chairs a workshop of event hosts and rights holders on “Defining event impacts and promoting positive outcomes” in relation to ASOIF’s “Common Indicators for Measuring the Impact of Events”.
Other great speakers at Host City 2021 include: Shiny Fang, Secretary General, UIPM; Clare Briegal, Chief Executive Officer, World Netball; Jason Ferguson, Chairman, World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association; Sarah Lewis OBE OLY, Global Sports Leader; Billy Garrett, Director of Sport and Events, Glasgow Life; David de Behr, Head of Sales Aggreko Event Services, Aggreko plc; Tim Briercliffe, Secretary General, AIPH - International Association of Horticultural Producers; Katie Traxton, Board Director, European Sponsorship Association; Daniel Cordey, Chair, Association of Global Event Suppliers and more to be announced.
Host City 2020 welcomed 1,000 registrants from 60 countries and, with such a stellar speaker line-up, Host City 2021 is set to exceed expectations.
Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events, VisitScotland, said: "EventScotland has a strong partnership with Host City, having been a supporter of the conference since its inception in 2014, and we are delighted to be welcoming it back to Scotland and Glasgow for the 7th consecutive year.
“As we continue to navigate the return of events in this new normal, the conference is great opportunity for the global events industry to come together and learn from one another while also looking ahead to what the future holds for major events under the theme of refresh, regenerate and reconnect.
"We look forward to working with the Host City team to deliver a conference that ensures a bright future for all events."
Dr Bridget McConnell CBE, Chief Executive of Glasgow Life, said: “As a proud supporter of Host City, we’re delighted to welcome the event back to Glasgow for the seventh year in a row.
“As one of the world’s leading host cities for festivals and major events, Glasgow has keenly felt the impact of Covid-19. As we begin to recover and rebuild from the pandemic, we know this event will be a key milestone for many of our colleagues across the world, and seeing how well last year’s Host City event was delivered on a digital platform was hugely encouraging and the global feedback was fantastic.
“We look forward to working with the Host City team once again in just a few weeks’ time to ensure that 2021’s event is even bigger and better than previous iterations, and to share best practice with our colleagues across the world as we all work to create the best possible future for events.”
Etienne Thobois, CEO, Paris 2024 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games said: “I am very pleased to be invited to speak once again at the Host City conference, to share with inspiring personalities my experience of organising the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the biggest sporting event on the planet. In a world of rapid changes and high expectations from citizens, we must succeed in organising an event that is both spectacular and sustainable, that monitor its impact while leaving a positive legacy on society. To achieve this, at Paris 2024, we have one watchword: creativity.”
Host City 2021 is delivered with supporting partners EventScotland, Glasgow Life and Glasgow Convention Bureau.
Event supporters include Headline Sponsor, Aggreko; Gold Sponsor, Sport Event Denmark; Silver Sponsors, the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH), DB Schenker and Sunset+Vine; Strategic Partners, The Association of Global Event Suppliers (AGES) and Global Esports Federation.

For more information visit www.hostcity.com or email ben.avison@hostcity.com

[Source: Aggreko] Aggreko is accelerating its investments in hydrogen technology. This step is part of its Net Zero programme and will enhance the company’s capability to provide emission-free temporary power worldwide. At present, the global leader in mobile and modular energy solutions is focusing on two different technologies.

Together with cleantech partner CMB.TECH, a 50 kVA hydrogen combustion genset demonstrator has been developed. After successful testing, Aggreko is now investing in 10 additional units to support hydrogen readiness, working with lead customers and partners to test and validate hydrogen as an energy carrier in temporary power. The solution will be ready for customer installations in Europe in H2/2021.This solution is Tier 4f/Stage V compliant without aftertreatment and results in near to no NOx emissions.
In addition, Aggreko has partnered with Nedstack for building a fuel cell demonstration unit that will integrate zero-emission hydrogen technology into Aggreko’s canopy storage battery solution. The hydrogen hybrid consists of a Proton Exchange Membrane fuel cell and a lithium-ion storage system. The zero-emissions solution will be piloted in Aggreko’s hub in Moerdijk, Netherlands.
Aggreko is exploring hydrogen technologies and fuel supply logistics to better understand long-term feasibility and usage in temporary power generation. The engine and fuel cell hybrids will be available as field-trial and demonstrator units at customer’s sites in the second half of 2021. This will help businesses around the world – from events to construction - to reduce their own emissions and bridge the gap to net zero.
Carsten Reincke-Collon, Director of Future Technologies at Aggreko, said: “At Aggreko we like to think of hydrogen as having its own superpowers, given the electricity it can produce without emitting any emissions. However, businesses around the world are only at the start of the hydrogen journey and therefore need to be supported to find the best ways of integrating it into their operations. This means better knowledge of and increased investment in storage and transport infrastructure, which is why we’re testing different technologies in order to fully understand the role hydrogen can play in transitioning temporary power to net zero.”
Last year, Aggreko committed to operating as a Net Zero business across all services it provides by 2050. The company will also reduce the amount of fossil diesel fuel used in customer solutions by at least 50%, reduce local air quality emissions of its solutions by 50% and achieve Net Zero across all its own business operations by 2030. To achieve these goals, Aggreko is increasingly offering clean technologies like battery storage and solar power, as well as prioritising the use of alternative fuels.

[Source: UIPM] The Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM) has opened a consultation process to identify a suitable replacement for Riding in the Olympic sport of Modern Pentathlon.

The historic move comes after the UIPM Executive Board (EB) unanimously endorsed a series of recommendations made by the UIPM Innovation Commission after a two-day meeting in Monaco last week.

The Innovation Commission was set up in 2018 to continuously monitor the composition of Modern Pentathlon and review its suitability for the Olympic Games in the context of Olympic Agenda 2020 and Olympic Agenda 2020+5 – the strategic roadmap of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

The EB met virtually on October 31 and endorsed the Innovation Commission’s recommendation that Riding be replaced with another discipline that enhances the popularity and credibility of Modern Pentathlon, while preserving its status as the ultimate physical and mental sporting challenge – as envisaged by Baron Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the Modern Olympic Games.

The EB decision has today (November 4) been communicated to UIPM’s global community of National Federations and members of the UIPM Athletes, Coaches and Technical Committees during a series of conference calls.

All changes resulting from the consultation process will be implemented in time for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Summer Games – only coming into force after Paris 2024, which will be the first Games to feature Modern Pentathlon’s new TV-friendly elimination format, which enables audiences to watch all five disciplines in 90 minutes within a Pentathlon Stadium.

The consultation process will be inclusive of specific stakeholder groups, namely athletes and coaches as well as media and marketing partners, and the selection of a new discipline will be based on the following criteria. It must:

• Follow the Coubertin narrative of the most complete athlete
• Not fall under the governance of another IOC-recognised International Federation.
• Allow for global accessibility and universality
• Be attractive and relevant for global youth and future generations
• Provide for gender equality and fairness
• Meet sustainability and legacy requirements of IOC Olympic Agenda 2020+5
• Be exciting and easily understandable for TV / digital audiences and all sports fans
• Be low-cost for both athletes and organisers (lower equipment costs and fewer officials)
• Result in minimal injury rates and be easy to learn and train based on athletes’ existing skills
• Not cause transportation and logistical complications
• Fit inside new Pentathlon Stadium and urban settings
• Be compatible with new 90-minute elimination format
• Be compatible with current handicap start and continuous event concept

UIPM President Dr Klaus Schormann said: “The recommendations put forward by the UIPM Innovation Commission are in continuity with the tradition of innovation which UIPM has in its DNA.”

“Many times in recent decades our sport has evolved to meet the changing expectations of the modern world. This evolution has created more appeal for young athletes and families, more value for spectators and TV / digital audiences, a reduced environmental impact and 100% gender equality since the Sydney 2000 Olympic Summer Games.”

“We can be rightly proud of what our global family has achieved, and now the time has come to be bold and ambitious once again in following the strong recommendations of our UIPM Innovation Commission.”

“On behalf of the UIPM Executive Board I ask our global community to embrace change and grasp the momentous opportunity before us. A new discipline will provide fresh impetus to our sport and strengthen the position of Modern Pentathlon within the Olympic movement.”

“The Modern Pentathlon will remain a five-discipline sport and will continue to provide the ultimate moral and physical examination of an athlete, as Coubertin envisaged.”

“In all of our communications with various stakeholders, we have all agreed that we need to keep our sport at the highest possible level, designed to test the physical and mental qualities of the complete athlete.”

“We now look forward to an inclusive and very positive consultation process as we consider which sporting discipline is the most suitable to take Modern Pentathlon into a new era, alongside Swimming, Fencing and Laser Run (laser shooting and running).”

UIPM 1st Vice President and IOC Member Juan Antonio Samaranch Jr added: “This is a very important moment for Modern Pentathlon – and actually for the Olympic programme.”

“We would be making a mistake if we were to take our place in the Olympic programme for granted past Paris 2024. It is not granted for us, it is not granted for anybody.”
 
“We really need to make sure that in that new environment, with all of these new sports that have demonstrated strength and a lot of traction with people and media, we have to make sure that our sport if flawless.”

The equestrian discipline of show jumping has been ever-present in Modern Pentathlon since the multi-sport was created by Coubertin, the pioneer of the Modern Olympic Games, and introduced to the world at Stockholm 1912.

Swimming, Fencing, Running and Shooting have also been retained throughout the past 11 decades, although the last two disciplines were merged to create the Laser Run combination that now provides a thrilling climax to every Modern Pentathlon and Tetrathlon.

The creation of Laser Run has been one of many changes marking the evolution of Modern Pentathlon as a safe and sustainable sport with a captivating, fast-paced format suited to 21st-century audiences.
 
The timeline for the selection process of the new discipline as well as the transition steps will be communicated in the forthcoming weeks.

Representatives of the United Nations, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Paris 2024 Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games spoke out at COP26 in Glasgow to highlight sport's capacity for action on climate change.

The speakers are all involved in the Sports for Climate Action Framework, which was launched at COP24 Katowice in 2018 as a collaboration between the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and sports organisations from all over the world.

The aims are dual: firstly to get the sports sector to move together towards a climate neutral world, and secondly to use its enormous reach to educate, inspire and raise awareness for climate action.

“Sport has a big climate footprint,” Niclas Svenningsen, Manager for the Global Climate Action team at UNFCCC told delegates at COP26 in Glasgow.

But sport also has a huge power to influence. “Not everyone might have a favourite politician, but everyone has a favourite athlete or club,” he pointed out.

Since its launch, the Sports for Climate Action Framework has grown to encompass 300 sports organisations including IOC, FIFA, Paris 2024 and many others. As one of the first sectoral partnerships, the sports framework has also led the way for other sectors to follow suit.

“We want to promote sustainable consumption and advocate more climate action towards athletes, fans, suppliers and everyone else.”

The Sports for Climate Action Framework aligns the sports sector with the UNFCCC Paris agreement to reduce carbon emissions by 50% by 2030 and achieve net zero by at least 2050 – including emissions by suppliers. The Sports for Climate Action Framework has set its own target to surpass this goal and achieve net zero by 2040.

“Almost everyone says we have to do this,” said Svenningsen.

One of the first organisations to get involved in Sports for Climate Action with the UNFCCC was the IOC.

Julie Duffus, Sustainability Senior Manager at the IOC confirmed that the organisation is on track with these goals. And in addition to the UNFCCC targets, the IOC has added an interim goal of reducing the carbon footprint of the Games by 30% by 2024, beyond which all future Games will have to be climate positive.

When it “walks the talk” on climate change, sports can use its power to influence others to change.

“We have such an opportunity to reach so many people,” Duffus said. “We also work with the Olympic movement – international federations, National Olympic Committees and Organising Committees – to reduce their carbon footprint and to use their agency to reach people.

“The athletes are great advocates to reach so many people. If we can give them a voice, we can reach a lot more people to take action individually and within their communities.”

Engaging everyone on earth

Hannah Mills MBE, the most successful female Olympic sailor of all time, is a sustainability ambassador for IOC. Her interest in sustainability began at Rio 2016 where she saw the scale of the problem of plastic pollution.

“What I’m really passionate about is using my voice, but also encouraging other athletes to lend their voice to these massive challenges,” she said.

“Nothing brings people together as much as sport or the Olympic Games does. It’s an amazing coming together of the human race in one place.

“I’m here to say to the politicians: Tokyo delivered a Games that no one that no one thought would happen – now it’s over to you to lead and deliver for us at COP26.

“We need every single person on earth to be engaged with it and doing their bit.”

“Everyone here is really committed to giving sport the platform and the opportunity to put forward the agenda for climate change and the sustainable development goals.

“Athletes have a key role. I appreciate we have a footprint as well, through sports events. But sport has a positive impact in so many areas and if we can harness that, then we stand a really good chance of tackling this crisis in the way that we need to.”

Team spirit

As Director of Sustainability at the Paris 2024 Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Georgina Grenon is responsible for achieving climate action.

“The Olympic and Paralympic Games is the biggest event in the world, and we are facing mankind’s biggest challenge.

“We couldn’t stage the Games like we used to. That’s why we’re fully aligned with the Paris agreement, to be the first Games to leave a positive impact on the environment.

“It is not easy. This is a race we have to win, and this is where athletes inspire us. We all have to become climate athletes, to be inspired by their resilience, to be objective and to go beyond what was done before.”

The carbon footprint of previous Summer Olympic Games has been estimated to be around 3.5m tons of CO2. The biggest component of this is travel, followed by construction, and then operations.

Using guidelines from the IOC, the Paris 2024 organisers have assessed the carbon footprint of their Games to be 1.5m tonnes of CO2. This major reduction is being achieved using 100% renewable energy, by building in a more efficient way, and by using existing buildings.

“This is how you start slashing emissions in a pragmatic way. It takes team spirit with international organisations like the IOC and all our suppliers to make this happen,” says Grenon.

“We are trying to progress in our way and want to get all of you in Paris in 2024 to celebrate this win as well.”

Positive brand affiliations

Hannah Mills highlighted another important responsibility of athletes and sports organisations – their affiliation with brands.

“As an athlete what’s not talked about enough is sponsorship in sport – who athletes choose to partner with and the messages they send.

“We have audiences, including young people who are influenced. We want to send positive messages from brands who want to do the right thing.

“Sport events have the ability showcase many solutions that wouldn’t have the platform otherwise.

“We can give sponsors the opportunity to show their best in these sport events,” Grenon added. “Most of the solutions are not there and we can’t bring them up on our own.”

“Sport has to come together with academia to find these solutions,” said Duffus. “It’s only by working together that we are going to solve this crisis.”

As well as decarbonising, Paris 2024 is also working across all 17 UN Sustainable Development goals “The social aspects are extremely important,” said Grenon. “This is how you build a sustainable legacy for the Games.”

The Olympic movement might be ahead of some sectors in decarbonisation, but there is still no time to lose.

“We have known about climate change for 100 years. We have to change now,” said Svenningsen.

“Sports is such an important part of raising awareness – it’s like the oil in the machinery. I’m positive we are going to reach a goal.”

To find out more from UNFCCC, IOC, Paris 2024 and how events can contribute to the environmental bottom line, register now for Host City 2021, taking place online from Glasgow on 7-8 December

Following calls from the governing bodies of other international sports events for a wider consultation on proposals for biennial World Cups, FIFA has announced it will reveal the outcome of its consultation process to member associations at a global summit on 20 December.  

The move follows calls from various stakeholders in sports, including the IOC, for a wider consultation on the proposal that would have major implications for other sports events.

At the FIFA Congress in May 2021, FIFA’s 166 member associations voted in favour of examining the feasibility of a men’s and women’s World Cup every two years.

A consultation process, led by FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, Arsène Wenger, is underway with football stakeholders’ groups including players, coaches, clubs, leagues, scientist/medical doctors, media, commercial and broadcast partners and fans.

But stakeholders in other sports have voiced concerns. In a statement on 16 October, the IOC Executive Board said:

“A number of International Federations of other sports, national football federations, clubs, players, players associations and coaches have expressed strong reservations and concerns regarding the plans to generate more revenue for FIFA.”

The statement highlighted the impact on other sports as one of the main causes for concern.

“The increased frequency and timing for the World Cup would create a clash with other major international sports,” the IOC statement said.

“This includes tennis, cycling, golf, gymnastics, swimming, athletics, Formula 1 and many others. This would undermine the diversity and development of sports other than football.”

The IOC also highlighted concerns raised by other stakeholders around gender equality and players’ welfare.

“The IOC shares these concerns and supports the calls of stakeholders of football, International Sports Federations and major event organisers for a wider consultation, including with athletes’ representatives, which has obviously not taken place.”

FIFA says it is already consulting widely on the proposal.

“We need to think about how we develop the football of the future and to ensure our sport is meaningful, exciting and robust for future generations across the entire world,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino after a FIFA Council online meeting on 20 October 2021.

“This is not necessarily the case today, and as the international match calendars are not decided beyond 2023 and 2024 for women’s and men’s football respectively, this is a crucial moment to ensure the further development of our sport across all 211 FIFA member associations. As mandated by the recent FIFA Congress, FIFA is considering all opinions in an inclusive and thorough consultation process.

"As world football’s governing body, it is FIFA’s responsibility to stimulate such a debate, and I am encouraged by the healthy exchanges that have been made to date from all sides,” the FIFA President added.

“Everyone should have their voice heard, and precisely through the consultation process, I have discovered that many stakeholders have never had the opportunity to discuss this topic properly. This consultation process is addressing that, and we will continue with the objective of reaching a consensus with solutions that work for everyone’s benefit. By hosting a global summit later this year, we will now have the opportunity to present one plan and to provide feedback to all our FIFA member associations.”

FIFA says its 211 member associations will now discuss the proposals in the coming weeks “with the objective of reaching an agreement on the structures of club and national team competition windows within the international match calendars for women’s and men’s football.”

[Source: SportAccord] Sport diplomacy, technology, virtual events, innovation and esports will be among the key topics tackled in a packed SportAccord Summit conference programme during the SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit 2022 in Ekaterinburg, Russia.

In announcing the theme of the conference as ‘A United Approach to Building Bridges in the Ever-Expanding World of Sport’, SportAccord has confirmed a series of unmissable addresses, panel sessions and presentations at the SportAccord Summit on Wednesday, 18 May 2022.

The SportAccord Summit will sit alongside SportAccord 2022’s other conference streams across the week of the highly anticipated gathering in Ekaterinburg, which will welcome global sport’s most influential decision-makers from 15-20 May 2022.

Numerous officials from International Sport Federations (IFs) will participate in the conference, alongside leading International and Russian figures from the sports governance, technology, and commercial sectors.

Expert speakers will explore topics as diverse as ‘The Power of Sport Diplomacy’, ‘New Approaches and Harnessing the Commercial Potential of Sport’, ‘Virtual Event Success Stories’, ‘How to Stay Connected and Engaged in a Changing Global Village’ and ‘Technology’s Role in the Ever-Expanding World of Sport’.

“With such a variety of topics on the agenda, the SportAccord Summit will provide a range of vital perspectives from different areas of the global sports movement,” Dr. Raffaele Chiulli, President, SportAccord and GAISF, said.

“From sport diplomacy to esports and future commercial strategies, the SportAccord Summit in Ekaterinburg will offer an essential snapshot of the most pertinent challenges and opportunities facing International Sport Federations and the sports industry as a whole.”

The SportAccord Summit is one of several conference streams at SportAccord 2022. The established CityAccord, HealthAccord, LawAccord and MediaAccord streams will be of interest to a broad range of stakeholders in sport.

As the only global sports industry event attended by all IFs and their stakeholders, SportAccord brings together organising committees, hosting cities and regions, governments and administrations, rights-holders, agencies and athletes, as well as top-level experts and organisations from the sports media, technology, investment, medical and legal sectors.

Registration is open for the SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit 2022 in Ekaterinburg, the 19th edition of SportAccord’s flagship annual event. Organisations interested in becoming an official partner or exhibitor can contact SportAccord to discuss these investment opportunities by emailing sales@sportaccord.sport, with SportAccord also offering an interactive exhibition floorplan and 3-D flyover of the SportAccord 2022 exhibition space.

You can follow SportAccord’s portfolio of events via Twitter @sportaccord or keep up-to-date via LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, VK, and Instagram.

Coldplay aims at reducing emissions related to their next world tour by 50 per cent, and to remove the remaining unavoidable emissions with a portfolio of carbon removal solutions.  
“Playing live and finding connection with people is ultimately why we exist as a band,” said Coldplay. 
“We’ve been planning this tour for years, and we’re super excited to play songs from across our whole time together. At the same time, we’re very conscious that the planet is facing a climate crisis. 
“So we’ve spent the last two years consulting with environmental experts to make this tour as sustainable as possible, and, just as importantly, to harness the tour’s potential to push things forward. We won’t get everything right, but we’re committed to doing everything we can and sharing what we learn. It’s a work in progress and we’re really grateful for the help we’ve had so far.” 
Nature-based carbon removal solutions to be used include reforestation, soil restoration, rewilding, and blue carbon projects, such as seagrass meadow restoration. Other solutions include sustainable aviation fuels, and a direct air capture and storage solution from Climeworks – the only technological approach included. 
Christoph Gebald, co-CEO and co-founder of Climeworks said: “It is already proven that carbon removal at scale is a must on the current emissions pathway and technological solutions will be needed. 
“We are very inspired to see public figures like Coldplay seizing the magnitude of the challenge and acting boldly by working towards ambitious emissions reduction and removing the unavoidable part. Supporting them with our carbon dioxide removal service takes us one step closer to our vision of inspiring 1 billion people to remove CO2 from the air.” 
To limit global warming to 1.5°C, humanity needs to drastically reduce emissions (also called mitigation), which prevents new CO2 from entering the atmosphere. Historic and unavoidable emissions must also be removed from the air to achieve net-zero and net-negative emissions globally. 
According to Climeworks, some scientific studies indicate that by mid-century 10 billion tons of CO2 will need to be removed from the air every year to keep global warming in the line of the limits of the Paris Agreement.