2024: End of Year Message
Our FairSport and Global Athlete team thank you for your continued partnership and support. FairSport’s ‘athletes first’ approach is focused on improving the anti-doping landscape, and our continued commitment and funding of Global Athlete encourages athletes to control their destiny.
It has been a challenging year for clean sport and athlete rights, but our ongoing and tireless advocacy continues to push the needle in favour of athletes. We are committed to helping and elevating the athletes’ voices for stronger rights. If you wish to donate to our work, please visit www.Fairsport.org
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ANTI-DOPING
2014 Sochi Russian Anti-Doping Scandal: With the support of FairSport, Dr. Grigory Rodchenkov (the namesake for the Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act passed in 2021 in the USA) continued to provide testimony and evidence at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. To date, this has resulted in over 253 athletes from Russia being banned from sport, with an additional 32 charged and 94 cases that remain under investigation.
World Anti-Doping Agency: It has been a challenging year for the anti-doping community, leaving athletes with little confidence in the global anti-doping system. Athletes were appalled that 23 athletes from China who tested positive for TMZ were never notified of their positive tests, nor were they afforded the opportunity for a fair hearing. These athletes continue to compete, undermining the integrity of the anti-doping movement. To date, the World Anti-Doping Agency has refused to investigate these Chinese cases, resulting in a global call for sweeping reforms of the World Anti-Doping Agency.
This year, the battle for clean sport reached a new critical phase with 23 Chinese doping cases. The United States Government (ONDCP) and the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), led by Travis Tygart, have continued to demand accountability and transparency from the World Anti-Doping Agency on behalf of athletes globally. Sadly, these calls have been met with a lawsuit by WADA to attempt to silence and intimidate USADA and the broader anti-doping community. As we end 2024, we are committed to working with athletes to call for reform and change.
USA Figure Skating: On 7 July 2024, the USA Figure Skating team, who were denied their gold medal due to a Russian athlete who was permitted to compete with a positive drug test at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, received their earned gold medals. Last year, Global Athlete was pleased to support USA figure skater Vincent Zhou in his journey to justice.
2024 PARIS OLYMPIC GAMES
Russia and Belarus: Global Athlete was pleased to support and work with athletes from both Ukraine and Belarus to ensure the International Olympic Committee (IOC) upheld its rules to ban any athlete from the Olympics who had affiliation with or supported the war against Ukraine. Ukrainian and Belarusian athletes worked tirelessly to provide information to the IOC on athletes who should be banned from the 2024 Paris Olympics, resulting in only 15 athletes from Russia and 17 athletes from Belarus attending the Games as Individual Neutral Athletes. The last 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo saw 209 Russian athletes and 107 Belarusian athletes attend the Games as neutrals. Athlete advocacy continues to hold sporting organizations accountable to the rules.
Athlete Rights: Over the past year, Global Athlete carried out social media campaigns targeting the IOC sponsors to demand the organization enhance athlete rights and compensation. The 2024 Paris Olympics was another Games gone by where the IOC once again failed to serve athlete interests. The IOC brings in, on average, nearly 2 billion USD in annual revenue, and yet athletes whose labor generates the value realized by the IOC do not receive any direct compensation and receive vanishingly little indirect compensation for competing at the Games.
The good news is sponsors are starting to place the IOC on notice for the lack of athlete compensation and rights. In 2024, three major IOC sponsors, Panasonic, Bridgestone and Toyota, decided to cease their IOC sponsorship. Toyota stated, “Honestly, I'm not sure they (IOC) are truly focused on putting people first.”
ATHLETE ADVOCACY
USA Fencing: Global Athlete worked with a collective group of US Saber Fencing Coaches and Retired Saber Olympians to address the urgent issue of saber fencing bout manipulations at the US and International levels. This alleged match-fixing impacted US Olympic selection egregiously and demoralized USA saber fencers. The athlete calls resulted in USA Fencing establishing an investigation into the match manipulation. The interim results of the investigation resulted in two referees being suspended. The final investigation report has yet to be released.
The Future of Sport in Canada Commission: As a result of tireless athlete advocacy, Global Athlete’s collaboration with Canadian athletes and athlete groups successfully pushed for the establishment of an inquiry to review the toxic culture that exists within Canadian sport. The Future of Sport in Canada Commission commenced its work in 2024. To date, they have held virtual and in-person meetings with athletes and athlete groups. Results of the Commission’s work are expected in 2025
Support: Over the past year, Global Athlete has worked privately with numerous athletes to bring justice to their causes. The work and support that was carried out behind the scenes has brought closure and remedy to athletes who were wronged by their sports.
Your Contribution Matters - Make A Donation
We hope you will join us on this journey with a donation. We rely on private contributions to fund our operations. Our independence is critical to our mission, and there is no feasible alternative funding model for our work. We thank you for your support and belief in a sporting future where human rights are reflected in athletes’ rights. On behalf of the entire team at FairSport and Global Athlete, allow us to also wish you a happy and prosperous New Year.
Sincerely,
Jim Swartz and Johann Koss
Co-Founders, FairSport
Rob Koehler
Director General, Global Athlete
FairSport is an independent foundation dedicated to eradicating cheating in sport. We support confidential sources who speak up to unmask doping, and we educate the global public on the value of honesty and integrity in sport.
Global Athlete is an international athlete-led movement guiding positive change in world sport to collectively address the balance of power between athletes and administrators. We aim to help athletes gain a more representative voice in world sport, recognising that the neglect and suppression of the athlete voice has gone on for too long.