18th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers Responsible for Sport in Porto (Portugal): A Call for the Future of Sport
Sport improves our societies, making us more active, respectful, supportive, and inclusive: it unites us through values. For sport to thrive, its management must be more collaborative, and its governance exemplary. Collaborative management and good governance in sport will thus be the focus of the 18th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers Responsible for Sport, which will take place on 9 October at the Alfândega Congress Centre in Porto. The event is organised by the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS), in cooperation with the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and the Portuguese Institute for Sport and Youth (IPDJ).
Bjørn Berge, Deputy Secretary General of the Council of Europe, will open the event alongside Pedro Duarte, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, and Linda Hofstad Helleland, Chair of the Committee on Culture, Science, Education, and Media of the Parliamentary Assembly.
Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee and Olympic Fencing Champion, will deliver a video address at the opening session on the European Sports Charter. Speakers will include Pedro Duarte, Raymon Blondel, President of the European Paralympic Committee, Benny Bonsu, Director of Daily Content at Olympic Channel Services, and Morten Schmidt, Programme Director at the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation.
The Conference will bring together representatives from more than 40 countries, as well as representatives from member organisations of the EPAS Consultative Committee. This year's edition will also include a group of youth delegates as part of a specific youth initiative.
On 10 October, two sessions will be held on leadership through gender equality in sport and dual careers. Gianluca Esposito, Director General for Human Rights and Rule of Law at the Council of Europe, and Pedro Dias, Secretary of State for Sport, will open the sessions.
Speakers at the session on gender equality will include Don McPherson, former professional American football player, and Ticha Penicheiro, former professional basketball player. At the session on dual careers, Vítor Pardal, National Coordinator of High-Performance Units for School Sports in Portugal, and Gévrise Emane, Olympic Judo Champion and Athlete Lifestyle Manager at the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP) in France, will take part.
The Conference will be preceded, on 8 October, by an event marking the 10th anniversary of the Council of Europe's Macolin Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions. André Villas-Boas, President of Futebol Clube do Porto, will give the opening address. Three discussion panels will address the main achievements of the Convention over the past decade, the challenges faced and overcome, as well as future prospects.