The Minister of Culture and Sports, H E Salah bin Ghanem Al Ali, with other officials during SIGA Regional Summit held at Marsa Malaz Kempinski Hotel yesterday. Pic: Baher Amin / The Peninsula
Doha: For the first time in the region, Qatar hosted the Inter-regional Sports Integrity Summit, in the presence of the Minister of Culture and Sports H E Salah bin Ghanem Al Ali, a number of ambassadors accredited to Qatar and a large number of prominent international personalities and decision-makers in international sports.
The two-day event, being held at Marsa Malaz Kempinski hotel, discussed many global sports issues related to fighting corruption, bribery and manipulation of sports results, and money laundering. The Summit also provides suggestions and proposals to reduce crime in the sporting world. It calls for cooperation between countries to develop appropriate legislation and laws to achieve integrity and transparency in the sports field.
The Summit is being organised by the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS) and Qatar Airways in cooperation with the Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA).
In his opening speech Mohammed Henzab, Chairman and CEO, ICSS Group and Vice-Chairman of SIGA said that hosting such summit for the first time in the Middle East, Asia and Africa was a good decision for sports security and Qatar, adding that the state of Qatar is a pioneer in promoting integrity, transparency and fighting corruption in sport in the region and around the world.
He also explained that sport has become an influential economic, social and cultural force, but at the same time it the sports way became full of corruption, violence, extremism, and many other organised crimes.
For his part, the SIGA Chairman Franco Frattini considered that sport is the identity of peoples, considering that integrity in sport is one of the values that started with the first Olympics in Greece 1891, and must be preserved In order to preserve the identity of future generations.
In his speech, Frattini said that defending integrity in sport and the rule of law is an institutional commitment, and organized crime must be combated in all its forms that seek rapid profit in various sports sectors.
SIGA Chairman Franco Frattini expressed his happiness to organize the second edition of this regional Summit in Doha, especially as Qatar has made great strides in achieving integrity in sports, as well as preparing to host the 2019 World Athletics Championships in a few days.
The Italian parliamentarian, former Italian foreign minister, the famous judge in Europe and member of the Italian sports court, said that SIGA aims through the Doha summit to set certain standards for the sports sectors aimed at law enforcement and ensure impunity in the field of sports corruption cases, as well as crimes related to integrity in sport.
SIGA Chairman said that the integrity of sport does not conflict with independence at all, but complement each other, as sport independence means it is free from corruption.
For his part, the CEO of SIGA Emmanuel Medeiros, praised Qatar’s sporting integrity, its sporting governance and the country’s sporting revolution in infrastructure in preparation for the FIFA World Cup 2020.
Speaking at the summit, Medeiros said that the State of Qatar and the International Centre for Sport Security, ICSS have made great efforts in the field of sports integrity and fighting sports corruption. He added that Qatar’s hosting of the Summit confirms its ability to create all means of success for any international event organized on its soil.
For his part, Bilal Erdogan, President of World Ethnosport Confederation, praised the great role played by Qatar in the field of sports integrity.
Giving brief about the World Ethnosport Confederation, he said it was founded in Istanbul, and currently working to shed light on corruption in sports, match-fixing and gambling, and all allegations that may cause chaos in sport, to find solutions and contribute to maintaining integrity in Sports. Salam Al Shawa, Senior Vice-President of Marketing and Corporate Communications at Qatar Airways, pointed out that the Qatar Airways sponsors a lot of sporting events in order to show Qatar’s capabilities in hosting major tournaments, and put them in the ranks of the developed nations in hosting all the various sporting events to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
“We believe in sports either football, tennis, cricket and other sports and sponsor a number of sports events inside and outside Qatar,” she added.
Sheikh Nasser bin Hamad bin Nasser Al Thani, Chief business officer at Ooredoo, said that the company’s sponsorship and support for the Integrity Summit is part of the company’s belief in the importance of sport in communities and the importance of integrity in the sports sector.
He also pointed out that the State of Qatar has become a sporting capital and attracts many international sporting events, mentioning that the sponsoring the summit comes in the framework of social responsibly of the company.
