Dec 22, 2014
An historic coming together of the world’s leading athletes and their unions in Cape Town this week has resulted in the establishment of UNI World Athletes, a global trade nion that brings together over 85,000 athletes across the world’s major professional sports.
Established at its inaugural world assembly under the auspices of UNI Global Union, UNI World Athletes unites champions from sports including football, cricket, rugby union, ice hockey, baseball, American football, basketball, rugby league, netball, skiing, cycling and Australian football.
The phalanx boasts the leadership of the world’s most influential athletes’ unions, with a ten member Executive Committee being unanimously elected under the Presidency of National Hockey League Players Association Executive Director Don Fehr.
Fehr is joined on the Executive Committee by:
First Vice President Brendan Schwab, who is also a Vice President of FIFPro, the world footballers’ association, which is also represented by FIFPro Board member Dejan Stefanovic and FIFPro Director International Relations, Frederique Winia.
Second Vice President Jean François Reymond, the Director of EU Athletes
Rob Nichol, the CEO of the International Rugby Players’ Association
Ian Smith, the COO of the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations
DeMaurice Smith, the Executive Director of the National Football League Players’ Association
Paul Marsh, the CEO of the Australian Football League Players’ Association and a Board member of the Australian Athletes’ Alliance
Toru Matsubara, the Executive Director of the Japanese Professional Baseball Players’ Association.
The establishment of UNI World Athletes follows three years of close collaboration of athletes unions, a period which has seen increased concerns on the part of athletes over the poor governance of sport coinciding with an increased attack on their basic economic and legal rights.
UNI World Athletes has dedicated itself to advancing six immediate goals:
1. The good governance of world sport
2. The development of effective and proportionate measures to protect the integrity of sport from threats such as doping and match manipulation
3. Athlete health and safety
4. Athlete development and wellbeing, including preparing athletes for life beyond a career which is dangerous, short-term and precarious
5. The protection of the intellectual property rights of athletes
6. Organising athletes throughout the world, to ensure that athletes are intimately involved in the decision-making of their sports.
Dec 1, 2014
The last visits are taking place now, job shadowing, exchange of good practices are on the programme of the associations.
Last week, the spillerforeningen visited UNFP in their office in Paris, as part of the exchanges taking place under the PDM Project launched by EU Athletes in 2014.
During the 2 days of the exchange they have learned about each other best practice in order to help professional athletes to transition after their professional career.
For the other associations the exchanges are continuing until mid December.
Nov 18, 2014
In June 2014, two prominent Dutch speed skaters, Mark Tuitert (Olympic Champion 1500 m) and Niels Kerstholt (World Champion short track) started an important European test case that will affect all professional athletes.
They filed a competition law complaint against the International Skating Union (ISU) with the European Commission. Mark and Niels allege that the ISU violates the EU competition rules by preventing skaters from participating in events that are not organized and promoted by the federation. If skaters would participate in independent, out-of-season events they can expect to be banned for life from all ISU competitions. This would put an end to their sporting career.
The issues addressed are apply to all sports – not just speed skating. In most other sports, athletes can be punished if they participate in events not authorized by their international federations (background document). Sanctions range from fines, periods of ineligibility of 1-3 years (e.g. swimming, equestrian sports, volleyball, cricket, hockey, sailing, and netball) up to lifetime bans (e.g. boxing and beach volleyball).
Various national competition authorities in Europe have confirmed that restrictions which enable sports federations to effectively block the organization of competing events, are in breach of the EU competition rules. All these cases, however, were purely national in scope. They dealt with the rules of national federations (e.g. motor sport in Sweden and Italy, equestrian sport in Italy and Ireland, and bodybuilding in Sweden).
The stakes are so much higher with respect to the current European complaint against the ISU. The abuse of the worldwide monopoly power of international sports federations can only be tackled at the European level. Moreover, this is the first time that athletes, the ultimate sufferers from unfair competition on the market for the organization of sporting events, have asked the European Commission to safeguard their #chancetocompete and to enable them to make a better living out of their profession.
The European Commission has a unique opportunity to set an important precedent across Europe that would positively affect the lives of thousands of athletes in a multitude of sports.
EU Athletes urges the Commission to take this case.
Support the #ChanceToCompete campaign
Nov 12, 2014
UNI Global Union is seeking a Head of Department for its UNI Sport PRO sector.
UNI Global Union is the voice of 20 million service sector workers around the world. Through 900 affiliated trade unions, UNI represents workers in 150 countries and in every region of the world. Our Head Office is based in Nyon, Switzerland with nearly 50 staff.
UNI Global Union is seeking a Head of Department for its UNI Sport PRO sector. The UNI Sport PRO sector has an ambitious program to promote the exchange of best practice between affiliates, improve working conditions for athletes, and represent the sector internationally.
We ask for applications for the position by no later than 17:00 (CET)November 24, 2014.
Any candidate wishing to apply should complete the application form (available from www.uniglobalunion.org/jobs) and return it to:
Colin Medland, Head of Operations, UNI Global Union, Avenue Reverdil 8-10, CH-1260 Nyon, Switzerland. Email: jobs@uniglobalunion.org
(Submission by email in word format preferred)
Nov 8, 2014
Following the successful conference on PDMs in Helsinki, EU Athletes held his general assembly.
On this occasion new board members were being elected. 4 seats at the board were open for reelection this year. After one round Omar Hassanein and Simon Taylor (in picture), Yves Kummer and Dessie Farrell were elected as new board members for a 3 years term.
Later that day, the board members apppointed Yves Kummer as president of EU Athletes.
Yves Kummer stated « I’m really happy to continue what we have started back in 2007. It will be my last term as President of EU Athletes. My goal is to prepare an easy transition for my successor. I have a strong and committed board around me that will help me to achieve that. With the upcoming EU expert groups EU Athletes have a big role to play and my duty is to put us on the right track »
The 1st meeting of the newly appointed board will be held in Amsterdam in January 2015.
Nov 8, 2014
25 PDMs from 13 different player associations gather last week in Helsinki (Finland) to discuss about player development and transition after the game.
Under EU Budget preparatory action in the field of sport, EU Athletes hosted his 2nd PDMs conference in Helsinki. During 3 days PDMs from all around Europe have exchange views on players transition after the game.
Workshop and presentations have help us to define more precisely EU Athletes position in the context of the future EU Expert Group on human resources that will deal with Dual Career of athletes.
This conference was also an excellent opportunity to present to the group a more in depth overview of the project proposed by EU Athletes under ERASMUS+.
Great contribution was made by AJFS who introduced his most recent video that will be presented at the EU Sport Forum in December on the story of Dani fernadez and PCA who gave an in depth presentation of their Award for the the best dual career project of athletes.
