Sport is obviously not a model without failure

Should sport be a model intended to convey to the people, by the grace of his huge media impact, positive values combining the taste of the effort of solidarity and team spirit The sport is only a reflection of society, i.e. imperfect human activity many excesses or errors Most stakeholders (leaders of the movement sports, but also responsible for non-governmental organizations, intellectuals or elected) of the 2eGlobal Sports Forum (GSF) held this week in Barcelona have oscillated between these two visions. "Sport is obviously not a model without failure." "It contains hazards, of which some are well known as doping or the violence of the supporters," said Lucien Boyer, President of Havas Sports & Entertainment and creator of this forum, which aims to become the "Davos of the sport." "But, first, can limit these negative aspects and then the hypermédiatisation of the sport and the hyperinfluence on the public there is a great way to positive messages." Sport, it is the passion, emotion, joy, health and all the values that we know. ""The global market from globalization did not referee." Sport can become. "It is, indeed, the only activity with music, truly global, which requires no translation," argued his side the famous advertising Jacques Séguéla.

Differing views

Following this reasoning, many participants of the GSF paré sport of all virtues. The British writer John Carlin, author of the book that inspired the film "invictus", recalled how Nelson Mandela used the 1995 rugby World Cup to refounding the South African nation. "The rugby and the Springboks (name given to the national rugby team, Editor's note) was the symbol of apartheid." After the World Cup, he became the symbol of the rainbow nation. "So far, other debaters did not fail to suggest that this manipulation of the sport could serve less noble causes, starting with nationalism. Sergey Tsyplenkov, Executive Director of Greenpeace Russia, pointed out that Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics will require 12 billion euros of investment - ten times more than in Vancouver - to build ex nihilo station of winter sports in a zone which is the equivalent of a natural park.

Meanwhile, Philip Beard, former marketing director of Locog, the 2012 London Games Organizing Committee, acknowledged that one of the objectives of the leaders of the city was to use the event to fully rehabilitate the area is London. Confirming the fact that, in the host country, the first benefit of the major sporting events is to accelerate the achievement of infra-structures (such as a new port and a marina in Sochi) which, if they were not drawn by these projects, would dozens of years to get out of Earth.

But is this really the vocation of the games to be a key element of the global land use planning "Sport should promote awareness of the public, on issues of environment in particular," says instead David Crawford, Member of the Canadian NGO Clean Air Champion, involved in the Organization of the Vancouver JO and which States: "helicopters and trucks is seen make snow at competition sites accounted for only 1 of the carbon of the games."

"What is interesting, analysis Lucien Boyer, is that it emerged during the debate that all stakeholders in sport should be pragmatic and exchange between them. The round table on governance supported this idea. The public authorities, which, seen, do not neglect to use the social impact of major competitions, have a duty to avoid the excesses of the sports movement. The latter, which claims its autonomy, public authorities need to carry out tasks that it has no means of financing (development of the sport, anti-doping) but must also combat the propensity of States to use sport for purposes purely policy.

Sandro Rosell, favourite for the Presidency of FC Barcelona, which must be renewed soon, as Lassana Palenfo, the President of the Association of African Olympic committees, the representatives of the Spanish Government and the Council of Europe, have agreed to estimate that in regulation, cooperation was necessary. In sum, while it is true that sport has a training on the company, cannot leave it in the hands of a few.