Today, the FIH Athletes Committee met for the first time in its new composition at the FIH headquarters in Lausanne. Four new members were elected by their peers at the Rabobank World Cup last year: Marsha Cox from South Africa, Annie Panter from England, Moritz Furste from Germany and Liam De Young from Australia.
At today’s meeting the Committee received several updates including briefings about the implementation of the Hockey Revolution, Olympic Agenda 2020, the qualification systems for the Olympic Games in Rio 2016 as well as the World Cup in 2018, latest development in umpiring and FIH’s digital initiatives.
Following a presentation about the recommendations of Olympic Agenda 2020, the Athletes Committee welcomed this new strategic roadmap which lays out the future of the Olympic Movement and was adopted by the full IOC membership in December last year. Several of the 40 recommendations aim to support athletes on and off the field of play. In the months preceding the IOC Session, FIH has been involved in related discussions and consultations. FIH President Leandro Negre was part of one of the 14 Olympic Agenda 2020 Working Groups. And new Committee member and athlete role model Marsha Cox from South Africa participated in the round table with IOC President Thomas Bach in November 2014 when he revealed the new proposals.
During its last meeting in March, the FIH Executive Board had decided officially to support the implementation of the recommendations in close coordination with the Athletes Committee.
Athletes Committee Chair Michael Green said after the meeting: “It is great to see that athletes are at the heart of the strategy. We are ready to play our role when it comes to contributing to the implementation of Olympic Agenda 2020 and will closely work with the FIH Executive Board in this regard.”
Olympic Agenda 2020 stipulates the protection of clean athletes as the IOC’s ultimate goal - a subject that features also on the top of FIH’s priorities. Hockey was one of the first Olympic sports to establish a whistleblowing system. Earlier this year, the FIH signed up to the IOC’s Integrity Betting Intelligence System (IBIS). As concrete outcome of Olympic Agenda 2020, the IOC set up USD 20 million fund to protect clean athletes against doping and the manipulation of competitions. It will also organise formal ceremonies to honour clean athletes who are awarded an Olympic medal following the disqualification of a competitor due to doping; put the athletes’ experience at the heart of the Olympic Games; and further invest in supporting athletes on and off the field of play e.g. when it comes to dual career.
About the FIH Athletes Committee
The Athletes’ Committee is made up of eight current and former hockey players who have the responsibility to act as a liaison between the FIH and the Athletes and make sure the Athletes have a voice in the FIH decision making process. The Chair, a position currently held by Michael Green, is also member of the FIH Executive Board.
The members of the Athletes’ Committee serve as a consultative body and make recommendations to the FIH Executive Board, FIH Committees, Advisory Panels and other bodies. The roles also cover seeking and providing feedback to the FIH on behalf of all athletes, whilst developing and promoting resources and initiatives to athletes such as health and welfare, anti-doping, social media, our need to create stars to attract new fans, career preparation and management. The Committee also plays a central role in liaising with the Athletes’ Commission of the IOC and other sporting organisations to enable the sharing of information and research and ultimately developing the game of hockey.
