Why is sustainability so important for major events?

Gary Meador (GM): Organising committees and bid cities are always weighing up the cost benefit of permanent versus temporary infrastructure; and creating a lasting legacy versus leaving things as the way you found them. A lot of the LOCs (local organising committees) are considering, along with the public consciousness, the most efficient and sustainable way to host major events, whether it is an international sporting event or music festival.

What a lot of the events are looking at now is they don’t necessarily need to build everything as a legacy. Not every city has the need for a permanent velodrome or a rowing venue. One of the things that Aggreko is really good at is working with customers to find innovative solutions to challenges around temporary power, air-conditioning and heating, or whatever their needs may be – to come in and help them make as little impact on the venue. At the end of the event we pick our stuff up and go away.

On the other hand, we also work with event organisers to help design what are meant to be legacy venues. We use our experience and key learnings during the planning phases, acting as a strategic partner as early as possible, to contribute to ideas on how infrastructure can be built or where it will have a fair use afterwards for example.

The benefit of adopting temporary power and cooling systems means you don’t have to build a venue to meet its peak requirements. You can build it to be somewhat less than that and supplement with on-site services to meet the additional capacity demand during the event.

For example, for a building that would normally seat 20,000 for a regular sporting event but has to seat 30,000 for a major event, you don’t have to put in an air-conditioning system that will cool 30,000 people, just one for 20,000 people that can be supplemented.

There’s all kinds of different ways we can work with LOCs to help them meet those goals.

You mentioned LOCs, do you work with them at this stage when they become an organising committee or is this something that potential event bidders can be thinking about earlier in the game?

GM: I think it’s definitely beneficial to think about sustainability earlier because a lot of people don’t have a great deal of experience with the temporary. Their only base of knowledge is working with a design-engineering firm, for example, that have only ever designed permanent structures. The earlier we can get involved the greater the opportunity is to improve efficiency and help create lasting benefits for the organising committees as they move forward.

It doesn’t have to be an organising committee, it could be the PGA of America, the US Golf Association or Formula 1, that’s just something we have developed a special niche for in the past 30 years.

Do you think that the rights holders and event organisers are fully aware of the possibilities of how solutions, like your temporary power solutions for instance, can make an event more sustainable?

GM: We are trying our level best to raise awareness of the benefits of temporary systems, but no I think that knowledge is still low. We have a lot of work to do moving in that direction. It’s not just our discipline; it’s the tent companies, the bleacher companies, the restroom trailer companies, everyone. We have mastered the ‘art of the temporary’ and either supplement or fully provide services for an event from start to finish but need to spread the word on the benefits of this approach.

Which particular events have you been working on recently to enable these sustainable solutions?

GM: We have supported quite a few major events on the world’s stage lately: the Ryder Cup in Minneapolis, Minnesota and the Trump inauguration in Washington DC. We didn’t have a huge amount of time to think about sustainable solutions for the inauguration as it comes together virtually in a week after the election, but at the Ryder Cup we were able to do some neat things.

We introduced some LED lighted balloons that replaced standard diesel-generated light towers. We took some of those to the site, plugged into the on-site power source we were already providing, and helped the PGA of America eliminate the need for 20 light towers they would have had to rent. I think this saved about 40,000 tonnes of carbon across the length of the job.

We are trying to find innovative ways to work with event organisers and help them to meet their sustainability goals too. We are looking at battery technology to come in and maybe take over a small load at night, so the generator can shut off and the load can run on battery. Then when the load grows larger than the battery system, the generators start back up during the day.

We are continuing to look at new innovations likes these to really help events lower their carbon profile and meet their sustainability goals as well as cost savings. We owe it to our customers to help them find better and economical ways to do things. That’s part of our mission.

Energy storage is becoming increasingly important for a whole range of industries, but you can see why in the major events sector…

GM: Yes, we are waiting for that magic battery to be built that makes it ultra-efficient to store this power too. The technology isn’t quite there on the batteries, but it’s getting better.

The boom in China's sports industry presents huge potential for foreign investment, especially from the UK.

Speaking at the Telegraph Business of Sport conference in London, Liu Xiaoming, the ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the UK, said that sport has become one of the country's new economic highlights and a national strategy for business.

From sports events and venues to retail and sponsorship, China has major opportunities for collaboration said Liu.

"There's no doubt China is a big sports nation, but China is not yet a strong sports nation," he said. "There are challenges. But in the long run China's sports sector has a huge market to offer.

"Many compare China's sports industry to a huge gold mine.

"The sport sector is fast emerging as a new growth point. By 2020 the total output will exceed US$450 billion. All this indicates a growing demand for domestic and foreign investment. [China's] sport industry is booming.

"[There is] great potential for China and the UK to collaborate in many aspects of the sports industry."

When asked about China's potential of hosting the 2030 FIFA World Cup, Liu added that it is a dream for the Asian superpower.

"Chinese people have three dreams for football," he said. "Dream one is to be a champion of Asian Games. They want to see the Chinese team perform better.

"Second dream is to host the World Cup. Maybe not 2030 but looking down the road we hope Chinese will host the World Cup.

"Third dream is to win the World Cup."

To discover more opportunities in China's sports, business and cultural events market visit Host City Asia in Beijing on 18 October.

IAAF president Sebastian Coe believes the creation of the new independent Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) will not just benefit competitors but also puts policies in place to combat any threat to the sport’s ethics.

Launched at the SportAccord Convention, the AIU will be chaired by David Howman and replaces the IAAF’s former anti-doping department. It will manage activities including education/prevention, testing, intelligence gathering, investigations, results management, prosecutions and appeals.

The AIU’s focus will not only be on anti-doping but will also address integrity breaches in other areas of concern such as bribery and corruption, betting, the manipulation of competition results, age manipulation and misconduct around transfers of allegiance.

Coe said that from now on athletes must be the centre of the sport and the framework for the AIU will provide them with a “safer ecosystem”.

“At the heart of the governance reform is the creation of the Athletics Integrity Unit,” said Coe. “So often the athlete has been the first thought, but actually in reality the last consideration. This will place the athlete absolutely at the centre of that ecosystem. So they are the first thought and also the first consideration.

“It [the AIU] will have a very different approach to anti-doping. It will be independent, will remove national interest and will speed up the process. We need to resolve these issues quickly, we need to resolve them in an independent way and we need to do them so we don’t have national interest obscuring that process.”

Coe added: “It’s really important in a sport that has 214 federations that the ultimate goal is not just to make your headquarters safer or the academic process of putting corporate governances in place. They have to have practical applications through area associations, in our case the continental associations, and then it’s got to have an alignment, an impact and practical support to the 214 federations.

“This will take time but we needed a constitution that was both fit for purpose and can deal with not just one or two issues but for the first time we will have a unit that can deal with all these problems.

“Yes there is a disciplinary element to it, yes there is a sanctioning element to it, there will be investigative powers – but it is fundamentally there to help the athlete make the right decisions throughout their career.”

With the launch of the AIU, the sport is putting systems in place to safeguard its future off the track. But with the introduction of events such as Nitro Athletics, Coe says that innovation must also happen on the track if the sport is to survive.

Not seen as an event for the purists, Nitro Athletics was headlined by sprint king Usain Bolt and is a team-based competition that combines strength, endurance, power and extreme energy.

What did Coe think about the Nitro Athletics spectacle held in Melbourne in February? “It’s very simple, you innovate or you die,” he said. “If sport is our activity then our business is entertainment. We haven’t adapted [to the modern world] as well as we should have done.

“What I liked about Nitro is it’s not that you are suddenly in the World Championships in London or the [Olympic] Games in Tokyo going to see elimination miles, power plays or mixed relays, but there were clues there as to why young people felt more engaged in what they were watching.

“I did throw down the challenge when I became president to ‘do things differently’. It’s important that we evolve and it’s important that we engage young people.

“Yes, sometimes that will be uncomfortable for the purists.”

Neven Ilic, the newly-elected president of the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO), is travelling to Lima to discuss preparations for the Lima 2019 Pan American Games with president of Peru Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and the Lima 2019 organising committee.

On his first international trip as PASO President, Neven Ilic will meet President Kuczynski at the Lima Government Palace on Tuesday at 10:00 local time.

President Kuczynski and the Lima 2019 Organising Committee will use the senior PASO delegation’s visit to the Peruvian capital as an opportunity to present the preparations underway for delivering a world-class event that leaves a positive legacy for Peru and the PASO region.

Lima 2019 president Carlos Neuhaus said: “We very much look forward to welcoming President Ilic to Lima. The new president has made it clear the Pan American Games is a strategic priority for PASO and that is a responsibility all of us here at Lima 2019 take very seriously. We are grateful for the opportunity to show him our progress to date and our plan of action for the coming months.

“We are confident that this is the beginning of strong relationship between Lima 2019 and the new PASO leadership as we work together to deliver a Games that PASO and Peru can be proud of, a great experience for every participant, and a meaningful legacy for the people of Peru and beyond.”

Following his meetings at the Lima Government Palace, President Ilic will travel to the Lima 2019 offices where he will receive presentations on the current status of preparations before being taken on tour of Lima 2019 venues and construction sites.

The PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games organising committee is working to enhance and develop accommodation after concerns were raised over a shortage of rooms.

At February's PyeongChang 2018 Chef de Mission Seminar, it was reported that while construction and planning for the Games venues were impressive, accommodation and transport links were an issue.

Because of a potential lack of rooms in the mountain and coastal clusters, spectators may be forced to book accommodation outside of the Olympic areas. Some may even have to travel from the capital city Seoul, which is more than an hour away by high-speed rail and more than two hours away via the expressway.  

At a PyeongChang 2018 roadshow organised by the Korea Tourism Organization in London, officials were asked what is being done to allay the fears of a shortage in rooms. Hyung Koo Yeo, secretary general of the PyeongChang Organising Committee for the 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (POCOG), told media that adjustments were being made for accommodation.

He said: "Regarding the client groups there are 21,000 rooms accredited by the IOC. The accommodation development plan is in progress regarding the contracts with various stakeholders and there are some changes such as cancellations, some additional reservations. We are in the process where we adjust these type of things.

"Regarding the spectators the host cities are preparing for this. We are in the process where we enhance and develop the quality and environment of these accommodations."

During the 2018 Winter Olympic Games 12 competition venues will be used, with six new venues purpose-built for the event. Four of the six venues – Gangneung Oval, Gangneung Ice Arena, Gangneung Hockey Centre and the Kwandong Hockey Centre – are 100% complete. The Jeongseon Alpine Centre and Alpensia Sliding Centre are 86.7% and 94.15% completed respectively.  

According to POCOG overall construction progress of venues is at 96.8% as of April 17.
 

[Source: ITU] The International Triathlon Union is pleased to announce that ITU President and International Olympic Committee member, Marisol Casado, has been appointed to four of the IOC Commissions. During the next year, Casado will serve on the Women and Sport, Olympic Solidarity, Public Affairs and Social Development Through Sport and Evaluation for the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad Commissions, while ITU Honorary Member Dr. Sarah Springman will serve on the IOC Sustainability and Legacy Commission.
 
“I am absolutely delighted to be involved in the four Commissions at the IOC,” said Casado. “To be able to present the IOC with the voice of an International Federation is always remarkable, and I commit myself to serve with dedication, transparency and loyalty to help develop not only our sport, triathlon, but also the whole world of sports.”
 
IOC President, Thomas Bach, announced the composition of the 26 IOC Commissions, highlighting the fact that 38% of the places are now held by women. “These changes are aligned with the implementation of Olympic Agenda 2020 and show that a stronger participation of women and a more diversified continental representation are our top priorities,” said IOC President Bach.

For the first time, female members are present on each of the Commissions. The IOC has also approved to increase the number of members from America, Africa and Asia, guaranteeing a more diverse continental representation.

Ms. Casado was appointed a member of the IOC in 2010, and since then she has been playing an active role on multiple commissions and activities. She joined the Women and Sport Commission in 2014, being also the only female president of a summer Olympic International Federation.
 
In 2015, she was appointed to the Public Affairs and Social Development through Sport Commission, presided by Mario Pescante, and the following year, in 2016, she was elected as a member of the Evaluation Commission for the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad, to which the cities of Los Angeles and Paris are bidding.
 
The last commission to be joined by Casado is the Olympic Solidarity, presided by the Sheik Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, which is focused on giving assistance to all the National Olympic Committees, particularly those with the greatest needs, through multi-faceted programmes prioritizing athlete development, training of coaches and sports administrators, and promoting the Olympic values.
 
ITU Honorary member and former Vice President, Dr. Sarah Springman, has also been appointed to serve on the Sustainability and Legacy Commission, presided by Prince Albert II of Monaco.
 
The new make-up of the IOC Commissions, which will provide assistance to the IOC and the Olympic Games Organising Committees, is also marked by the inclusion of young men and women who represent a new generation and will be the sports leaders of tomorrow.
 
“I am really excited that some young faces are joining us working on the Commissions. Mentoring the new generations is always a great investment for all, as we’ve been doing during the last few years, also at ITU,” said Casado.

UK International Trade Minister Greg Hands has signed an arrangement with the organisers of the 2019 Pan-American Games, making the UK the lead partner in helping deliver the fourth largest sporting event in the world.

The games, hosted in Peru for the first time in Lima in 2019, will bring together the nations of North and South America, with more than 5,000 competitors in 36 different sports. As part of the agreement, a team of UK experts with experience running more than 100 major sporting events including the 2012 London Olympics, will work closely with the Lima 2019 organising committee, helping it deliver the infrastructure and organisation of the games on-time and on-budget.

Contracts worth hundreds of millions of pounds will be open to UK companies to help deliver the organisation of the games in areas like event management, security and construction where the UK is a world-leader having been involved in the organisation of every major international sporting event since the 2000 Olympics.

Carlos Neuhaus, president of the Lima 2019 organising committee, said: “This arrangement with the UK government is fundamental to our progress in successfully organising and delivering the Lima 2019 Games. We are thrilled to be working in close collaboration with our British partners, benefitting from their extensive expertise to make the Lima 2019 Games a success.”

Hands added: “Since the Sydney Games in 2000 the UK has been involved in every major global sporting tournament offering support in areas like construction, transport and event organisation. This new agreement will deliver that world-leading expertise to help make the Lima 2019 Games a success, creating opportunities for UK companies and a lasting legacy for the Peruvian people as we did at London 2012.”

British ambassador to Peru, Anwar Choudhury, added: “This is a significant new milestone for our two countries. We are in this together, as friends and as long-standing partners. Through our support and expertise, we are confident we can make the Lima 2019 Games a tremendous success and leave a lasting legacy for Peru, just as the 2012 Olympic Games did in London.”

Knowledge transfer is also part of the bilateral arrangement. The team of British experts has an accumulated experience of more 100 large sporting events, including the 2012 Olympic Games in London, to help the Special Project ensure effective time-management and quality delivery of the Lima 2019 Pan American Games.

SportAccord Convention 2017, which took place in this year’s European Capital of Culture, Aarhus, Denmark from April 2-7, was billed as a runaway success.

With more than 1,600 delegates in attendance representing 71 nationalities, including 100 International Sport Federations and Associate Members, the 15th edition attracted key decision-makers from the world of sport.

With sport being the fastest growing sector in the entertainment industry, the six-day Convention included a full conference programme focused on ‘Innovation in Action’. This included the Plenary keynote from Michael Evans, President of Alibaba Group, City Day, MediaAccord and LawAccord, as well as a sell-out exhibition with 66 booths representing some of the international federations, cities and many industry sectors.

SportAccord Convention also received a royal visitor with Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark and heir apparent to the throne who visited the exhibition, as well as legendary goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel who greeted delegates on the Sport Event Denmark stand.

This year saw 135 cities and regions attend the SportAccord Convention who brought more than 300 delegates between them, including the 2024 bid cities who delivered introductory presentations at the ASOIF General Assembly.

Francesco Ricci Bitti, President of SportAccord Convention and ASOIF said: “SportAccord Convention is flying again. Following a difficult transition period, the SportAccord Convention in Aarhus has been a great success with special thanks to our hosts, Sport Event Denmark and the City of Aarhus.

“In the last few days, we have also had meetings with 15 cities interested in hosting future conventions from Asia, the United States of America, the Middle East and Europe. This confirms how relevant SportAccord Convention is for the international sports community.”

The glittering opening ceremony organised by this year’s Convention hosts was attended by more than 850 delegates. Held in the Musikhuset, the event featured culture, music and the performing arts, as well as speeches from the presidents of SportAccord Convention and the International Olympic Committee, and the Mayor of Aarhus.

The 16th edition of the SportAccord Convention was announced by Deputy Prime Minister Tanasak Patimapragorn and will take place in Bangkok, Thailand from April 15-20, 2018 and H.E. Mrs. Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, Thailand’s Minister for Tourism and Sports was also in attendance with her delegation.

The closing event took place in the iconic art museum of ARoS where hundreds of guests enjoyed panoramic rainbow views of the city, exclusive access to the new exhibition ‘The Past’, and cocktails and tapas accompanied by live music.

Lars Lundov, CEO of Sport Event Denmark, a long-term gold partner and this year, co-host of the SportAccord Convention, said: “Playing co-host to SportAccord Convention together with the City of Aarhus has been a privilege and honour, and we hope and believe that all delegates have enjoyed our hospitality and experienced the beautiful City of Aarhus. Thanks to SportAccord Convention for giving us the opportunity, and we look forward to catching up with the world of sport in Bangkok next year.”

Glasgow will become the first city in the world to simultaneously stage four Olympic-discipline cycling championships within its boundaries following a host city agreement (HCA) between the Glasgow 2018 European Championships and the Union of European Cycling (UEC).

The European Championships is a new multi-sport event that will see the continent’s leading athletes compete for career-defining moments of glory at world-class venues throughout Scotland. The first edition will be held in 2018 in a unique sporting partnership between Host Cities Glasgow and Berlin. It will combine the existing European Championships of athletics, aquatics, cycling, gymnastics, rowing and triathlon along with a new golf team championships at the famous PGA Centenary Course at Gleneagles.

Glasgow is host city for all events with the exception of athletics, which takes place in Berlin. Around 3,000 athletes will visit Scotland during the Championships while a further 1,500 athletes will compete in Berlin.

An action packed 11-day sports schedule will begin on August 2, 2018 with 10 days of television coverage providing a seamless viewing experience for a potential TV audience of more than one billion across Europe.

The four individual European Cycling Championships for road, track, BMX and mountain biking will all take place in Glasgow attracting 650 of Europe’s top cycling names to the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome at the Emirates Arena, the Cathkin Braes Mountain Bike Trails, the streets of Glasgow and a new world championship and Olympic-standard BMX track to be built in the Knightswood area of the city.

The HCA with the Union Européenne de Cyclisme (UEC) pledges to deliver an event that elevates the status of European cyclist in all disciplines as they compete for the status of European champion.

David Lappartient, president of the Union Européenne de Cyclisme, said: “For the first time ever in cycling, four major European Championships will take place in the same city and will last two weeks. This is a historic moment for European cycling enabling us to forge ahead with our development programme.

“The city of Glasgow has always loved the bike and is an ideal venue for combining the tradition of Road and Track cycling with the modernity of BMX and Mountain Bike, in a setting that will be particularly appreciated by all fans and experienced cyclists.

“We are looking forward to this experience with great enthusiasm in the knowledge that these 2018 European Championships promise to be a great success.”

British Cycling’s cycling director, Jonny Clay, said: “It’s fantastic to have the European Championships coming to British soil. With the 2014 Commonwealth Games , a national road race championships, and two rounds of the track world cup all hosted in Glasgow, the city’s appetite for cycling knows no bounds and the Championships will no doubt draw the crowds from across Britain.”  

Glasgow’s Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome hosted the opening round of the UCI Track Cycling World Cup last November and the city also staged events for road, track and mountain biking during the 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Glasgow 2018 will see a major BMX event come to the city for the first time ever and the new track at Knightswood will leave a lasting legacy for the sport in Scotland.

Glasgow 2018 Championships director Colin Hartley said: “Cycling has historically attracted wide support in Scotland and we are delighted to be bringing four different disciplines to Glasgow 2018.

“With cycling events spread across the city and competition on the streets and roads of Glasgow and surrounding areas, we hope to give as many people as possible the chance to see sporting history being created.

“Moreover the creation of a world-class Olympic standard BMX venue in Knightswood will provide a long-standing legacy for the sport beyond the Championships.”

SportAccord Convention is delighted to welcome the return of Sport Event Denmark as a Gold Partner and Co-Host for the 15th edition of the SportAccord Convention taking place in Aarhus, Denmark from 2-7 April 2017.

Sport Event Denmark is the national Danish sporting event organisation, established and supported by the Danish Government. Its main objective is to help develop and promote sport, to attract and host major international sporting events and congresses.

Lars Lundov, CEO of Sport Event Denmark, said: “It is a unique situation for Sport Event Denmark to welcome SportAccord Convention and all the delegates to Denmark as co-host as well as being Gold Partner once again. We will take the advantage to walk-the-talk in terms of hosting, not only in terms of the Convention but also in terms of the many major international sporting events that are in the pipeline. From the Opening of the Convention until the Closing Event in the ARoS Museum, we will do our utmost to demonstrate why Danes are some of the happiest people in the world and to share how the Danish ‘hygge’ can be translated into an international setting.”

To experience this in action, Sport Event Denmark will be found at the Danish Booth (no. 90) where delegates can take part in an interactive competition with the chance of winning a range of daily prizes including Beoplay H7 – Premium wireless over-ear headphones. Delegates are also invited to join the Danish team for Happy Hour from 16:30 to 17:30 daily from Tuesday 4 to 6 April inclusively, to sip and “exbeerience” one of the most famous beers in the world – Carlsberg.

Commenting on the partnership, Nis Hatt, Managing Director of SportAccord Convention, said: “It is always a pleasure to have Sport Event Denmark onboard as a Gold Partner and particularly this year as Co-Hosts with the City of Aarhus. Their enthusiasm, passion and contribution in putting this event together has been instrumental in helping to make the 15th edition of SportAccord Convention a special one in this year’s European Capital of Culture, Aarhus Denmark, and we would like to offer our sincerest thanks.”

Around 2,000 delegates register and attend the SportAccord Convention to network and discuss the business of sport with over ninety percent (90%) of the delegation being key decision-makers and in a position to take action. The majority of delegates, partners and exhibitors return each year, ensuring the Convention is part of their business strategy.