Leading legal minds tackle athlete representation and rules for transgender athletes at LawAccord

Legal experts tackling topical legal issues confronting IFs including athlete representation, rules for transgender athletes in international sport and how to ensure integrity in decision-making will come together at LawAccord, one of the four specialist streams at this year’s SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit.

There will also be an opportunity to get the inside track on institutional developments, with a presentation and Q&A session from Matthieu Reeb, Director General of the Court of Arbitration for Sport; and Ross Wenzel, General Counsel at the World Anti-Doping Agency. The Sports Law Practice Group from Swiss law firm Kellerhals Carrard will provide an update on recent decisions from the European Court of Justice.

Sport’s most influential industry gathering will take place from 7 to 11 April in Birmingham – West Midlands and bring together more than 1,500 leaders and key decision makers from over 120 International Federations (IFs), the International Olympic Committee and organisations involved in the business of sport.

Meet the speakers!

Hear from sports law experts, including Áine Power, Deputy Legal Director at the International Equestrian Federation, who will share insights on involving athletes when drafting rules:

“The ‘best’ rules are those that are formulated and drafted further to thorough consultation with the relevant stakeholders. It goes without saying that athletes are the key stakeholders in our sport - no athletes, no sport. Therefore, it is essential that we hear from the athletes as part of the rule revision process, it helps us ensure that our rules are fit for purpose.”

Prof Yannis Pitsiladis, Professor of Sport and Exercise Science at Hong Kong Baptist University and member of the IOC Medical and Scientific Commission, will provide a scientific perspective on regulating the participation of transgender athletes in elite sport:

"Establishing policy for the inclusion of transgender athletes in elite sport is immensely challenging due to the need for a fair and non-discrimination policy of integration (inclusion), while considering physiological differences, hormone treatments and sport-specific demands, requiring nuanced assessments amidst our evolving scientific understanding.”

Tanja Haug, Board Member of the Biathlon Integrity Unit will address the need for independent decision-making in international sport:

“In sport, independent models are needed in all areas where integrity is at stake - where adherence to ethical values, unbiased decision-making, avoidance of conflicts of interest, accountability and transparency are crucial to ensure good governance and protect athletes and the future of sport. This applies in particular to the areas of anti-doping, safeguarding, competition manipulation, anti-corruption, vetting and election monitoring.”

For the full list of speakers and topics please see the LawAccord programme

LawAccord - join the world’s leading sports law experts and institutional leaders

The delegate pass for World Sport & Business Summit 2024 is available at the rate of CHF 2,000 until 29 February 2024, and will increase to CHF 2,500 from 1 March. Click here to register now.

A special one-day rate of CHF 600 is available to legal practitioners who wish to attend LawAccord only.

If you are interested to attend, please send email at lawaccord@sportaccord.sport

Partners

The SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit 2024 is supported by a number of strong partners and suppliers:

Gold Partner: Sport Event Denmark

Silver Partners: EventScotland, Explore Edmonton, Tourism & Events Queensland

Bronze Partner: Sport Liverpool 

Official Suppliers: DB Schenker, Wiz-Team

About SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit 

The SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit brings together around 1,500 leaders and key decision makers from over 120 International Federations (IFs), the International Olympic Committee, and organisations involved in the business of sport. 

The Summit provides an unrivalled platform enabling global business leaders and host cities to have access to all the International Federations and their stakeholders in one location over several days. 

This unique event is a combination of official sports meetings, networking gatherings, a themed conference programme, and exhibition space enabling International Federations, industry, cities and regions to showcase and advance their sport, services and facilities. 

About SPORTACCORD

SportAccord is a sports event organisation based in the Olympic Capital, Lausanne, Switzerland, and governed by stakeholders representing the Olympic and non-Olympic International Federations.  

It brings together International Federations and organisations involved in the business of sport with the aim to serve, promote and protect the common interests of its stakeholders, help them achieve their global objectives and facilitate knowledge-sharing.

STAKEHOLDERS

SPORTACCORD WORLD SPORT & BUSINESS SUMMIT 2024 ENQUIRIES

Media: media@sportaccord.sport

General: info@sportaccord.com

About Yutang Sports

As one of SportAccord's Principal Media Partners, Yutang Sports is a Chinese leading sports marketing and media platform, with an ultimate mission to connect China and world through sports. After years of growing, Yutang Sports, with a comprehensive media and marketing promotion system, is now dedicating to reporting sports business and marketing trends, providing sports business news, analysis, and exclusive data reports in both Chinese and English. Having been cooperated with top-level domestic and international sports summits, Yutang Sports is opening a window for Chinese sports industry to embrace the world.