eaa_inside_1-2010

INSIDE TRACKYour Sport for LifeYour Sport for Life

Newsletter of European Athletics

1 / 10 | JULY

IS SET THE STAGE

Your Sport for Life

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WORD FROM THE PRESIDENT

IMPRESSUM

European AthleticsAssociation Européenned’Athlétisme

President: Hansjörg Wirz Vice Presidents: Jose Luis de Carlos, Svein Arne HansenTreasurer: Karel Pilny Director General: Christian Milz

Offi ce:Avenue Louis-Ruchonnet 18CH-1003 LausanneSwitzerlandPhone +41 (0)21 313 43 50Fax +41 (0)21 313 43 51offi [email protected]

“Inside Track” is published by European Athletics

Co-ordination:James Mulligan Aditya Kumar European Athletics Communication DepartmentPhone +41 (0)21 313 43 [email protected]

Text, Photos:James Mulligan, Aditya Kumar, Bill Glad, Phil Minshull, Hansjörg Wirz, Christian Milz, Peter Stafford, Andy Heading, Picture Alliance

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Print:Multicolor Print AGCH-6340 Baar, Switzerland

Cover pageThe stage is set for the 2010 European Athletics Championships in Barcelona between 26 July and 1 August.

Hansjörg Wirz | President, European Athletics

I write this with a growing sense of excitement and anticipation just a few days before the start of the 20th European Athletics Championships in Barcelona – the pinnacle of the European Athletics competition programme.

The championships are very important for our movement. It is the shop window for athletics in Europe, when established and new stars of our sport have the chance to shine on the continental stage, and it is when our sport reaches its largest audience.

The eyes of Europe – and the world – will be trained on Barcelona between 26 July and 1 August, with the event attracting a huge amount of interest from media, sponsors and the public.

Indeed, the value of this high-quality event cannot be underestimated – not least in terms of what it brings to the host city.

Our belief is for these championships to be fully integrated within the city so that the event doesn’t begin and end as one enters and leaves the stadium. With this in mind, I am very much looking forward to being in Barcelona for such a special event that will be celebrated throughout this famous city. The opening ceremony, which will showcase local identity, arts and culture, will take place in front of Barcelona’s Font Magic on Avenida María Cristina. And for the fi rst time in the history of the European Athletics Championships, the Marathon and Race Walk events will be entirely held in the city centre.

Eyes of the world turn towards Barcelona

2 WORD FROM THE PRESIDENT • Eyes of the world turn towards Barcelona

4 BARCELONA 2010 • Barcelona opens its arms to the rest of Europe • Blasts from the past • Internet Initiatives • A Trip down memory lane • Meet ‘Team European Athletics’

12 HELSINKI 2012 • Helsinki 2012 – let the new tradition begin

14 ECH 2014 AND BEYOND • Long-term planning paving way for successful future events

15 EVENT REVIEW • Russia returns to number one

17 SUSTAINABILITY PROJECT • European Athletics and B10 take responsibilities seriously

18 YOUNG LEADERS FORUM AND ONLINE COMMUNITY

• Looking for the future leaders

20 DEVELOPMENT • EU athletics projects making progress

21 THOUGHT LEADERSHIP • European Athletics building

Premium and Classic Meetings brand

22 DIRECTOR GENERAL’S STATE OF SPORT

• Making athletics “Your Sport for Life“ for future generations

24 2010 AWARDS NIGHT • Time to honour the best of European athletics

This will mean that the whole of Barcelona can be a part of the championships. Of course, staging the championships is a great logistical challenge and I extend my thanks to the B10 local organising committee under the leadership of José Maria Odriozola and the general coordination of Monica Barra and the European Athletics staff members, who have all worked so hard to make the event a success.

An important measure of success is to have a full stadium every day. Ticket sales for Barcelona 2010 have been increasing in the lead-up to the event and we are confi dent that large and enthusiastic crowds will cheer the athletes on every day.

There has been a strong demand, meanwhile, for sponsorship packages for the event. Several important National Partners and Suppliers have been signed up, while European Athletics’ main International Sponsor SPAR and International Partners OMEGA, EPSON, LE GRUYÈRE and INTERSPORT will have a high-profi le presence during the event.

Three weeks before the start of proceedings, 46 television channels had expressed their intention to broadcast the event with about 1,000 hours of coverage planned over the six days of competition, with some major broadcasters still to express their intentions. Television is the gateway for our sport to a wide audience of existing

INSIDE TRACK 1|10 Newsletter of European Athletics 3www.european-athletics.org

Your Sport for LifeWORD FROM THE PRESIDENT

and potential new fans and I am happy to say that our long-standing partnership with the European Broadcasting Union, which has been of the utmost importance in ensuring excellent coverage of our events across Europe since 1981, is set to continue.

With all these important elements in place, I am sure that the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona will be a memorable occasion and that the spectators in the stadium and the millions of TV viewers across the continent and around the world will enjoy watching Europe’s best athletes battle to become European champions.

The excitement of Barcelona will have barely died down before expectations rise once more, this time for the 2012 European Athletics Championships in Helsinki. This will be the beginning of our fl agship event following a two-year cycle. This is a necessary change from the four-year cycle – not least as an answer to the changing habits and expectations of society.

The switch is certain to increase the championships’ visibility, take advantage of the intense interest in athletics during the Olympic years and add momentum to the sport ahead of the Games, and increase the number of European champions – thus providing inspiration to a great number of Europeans, particularly young Europeans.Helsinki is the perfect candidate to organise our main championships in an

Olympic year as it switches from the four-year cycle. It will be the third time the Finnish city will host the event after 1971 and 1994. Let us not forget that the city also hosted the IAAF World Championships in 1983 and 1995. The 2005 World Championships was a fantastic success and Helsinki is very capable in organising large-scale events.

It was a near-unanimous decision during the European Athletics Congress in Cannes in 2007 when 47 Member Federations out of 50 accepted the integration of a second European Athletics Championships into our four-year competition programme. This overwhelming consensus shows the support our Member Federations have for the championships every two years.

Of course, there are challenges that need to be addressed but the European Athletics Championships will integrate successfully into the Olympic year and be an important competition in the schedule.

I am sure that once Helsinki takes the baton from our friends in Barcelona following a fantastic championships this summer they are sure to provide us with a successful new chapter in the history of European Athletics in 2012.

For now, though, our attention is 100 percent with Barcelona. I hope you enjoy the spectacle as much as I will.

European Athletics President Hansjörg Wirz and Jordi Hereu, the mayor of Barcelona (5th and 7th from the left), are joined by some of the key members of the Local Organising Committee of the European Athletics Championships during the inauguration of the “world’s fastest track” – the Mondotrack FTX – at the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona.

European Athletics thanks its valued International Sponsors and Partners present during Barcelona 2010

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Your Sport for Life EVENT PREVIEW

Barcelona opens its arms to the rest of Europe

Spectacular, because the fantastically picturesque setting of the championships could leave visitors to the Catalan city, especially those who have never been before, gasping in astonishment.

Spectacular, because the feats by the athletes in the Olympic stadium - which is sometimes known by its offi cial title Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc Lluís Companys - during the six days of action should match their surroundings and evoke a similar response among spectators in the stadium or in front of their TV screens, and not just in Europe but all around the world.

This year’s European Athletics Championships will be a milestone in Spanish history.

The country has staged many magnifi cent sporting occasions, including the 1992

Olympic Games in Barcelona, but never before have these championships been staged in Spain.

History tells us that championships records will be broken during the six days of competition, and perhaps even European records will be set, although it’s obviously impossible to say which ones will fall.

Around 1,500 athletes from European Athletics’ 50 Member Federations will take part in the 20th edition of the championships, which were inaugurated in 1934.

For many competitors, they will be the embodiment of the famous saying by Olympic Games founder Pierre de Coubertin, “The important thing in life is not victory but combat; it is not to have vanquished but to have fought well.”

However, for others, only standing on top of the podium or getting a medal will suffi ce.

European athletes won 37% of the medals at last summer’s World Championships in Berlin and 14 men and women were crowned as world champions.

The vast majority of those medallists and winners from 12 months ago will also be present in Barcelona, putting their reputations on the line.

“I am aiming to win the gold at the Europeans. It would be foolish of me to think anything other than that,” commented Great Britain’s 400m hurdler David Greene recently.

The Welshman was a World Championships fi nalist and the fastest man over the barriers in 2009 and he has maintained his place at the top of the rankings this summer, including winning at the SPAR European Team Championships last month to become the favourite for his event in Barcelona.

His ambitious words and commitment are typical of those who currently reside in the top echelon of the continent’s athletes.

From the magnifi cent opening ceremony of the European Athletics

Championships Barcelona 2010, which will be held by the Font Màgica de

Montjuïc on the evening of July 26, until the event closes six days later on

August 1, spectacular is a word that will be used frequently.

5www.european-athletics.orgINSIDE TRACK 1|10 Newsletter of European Athletics

Your Sport for LifeEVENT PREVIEW

Inevitably over a four-year cycle of the European Athletics Championships, some famous names will retire and others, like Greene, will emerge to take their place. However, Barcelona will also welcome several athletes who have shown their competitive mettle over an even longer period.

Portugal’s Francis Obikwelu (100m), France’s Mehdi Baala (1500m), Sweden’s Christian Olsson (Triple Jump) and the Czech Republic’s Roman Šebrle (Decathlon) all won their fi rst European title in 2002, defended it four years later, and the quartet are expected to be in the hunt for their third consecutive titles.

Another type of hat trick will be sought by the Norwegian Javelin thrower Andreas Thorkildsen and the Russian walkers Valery Borchin and Olga Kaniskina.

They will be seeking to hold the Olympic, European and world titles simultaneously in the same event, the only three athletes in Barcelona that can achieve that honour, and one that Thorkildsen already has to his name after winning four years ago in Göteborg.

Borchin and Kaniskina will be part of a very strong Russian team that was the most successful nation four years ago when they got 34 medals, 12 of them gold.

Russia showed only last month that the country’s athletes, coaches and offi cials have not let their guard drop by winning the SPAR European Team Championships by a big margin.

However, although thousands of fans will fl ock from all corners of Europe to the Mediterranean, there will also be a huge contingent of local supporters in Barcelona

which will help give the championships a distinctly Spanish and also Catalan fl avour.

Riding on the crest of a wave of success for Spain on other sports in recent years, expectations are high, but there is optimism that the host country can equal or better its record 15 medals won in Munich eight years ago.

One Spanish personality who has already made his mark though, is the championships mascot Barni.

Barni has become a familiar face across the length and breadth of Spain and Europe, meeting and greeting some of the most famous names within athletics and in many other sports as he has tirelessly promoted the event.

Tennis player Rafa Nadal, Argentine football star Lionel Messi and a myriad of athletics’ defending world and European champions are just some of the people he has embraced on his travels since the start of 2008.

There will be many more welcomed into his arms during the championships.

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CHAMPIONSHIP MILESTONES

Blasts from the past

Hans-Peter Ferner

Francina “Fanny” Elsje Blankers-KoenLuigi Beccali

The 76-year story of the European Athletics Championships refl ects the history of Europe itself. The competition has been a witness to a paradigm shift Europe has been through in the last century. Be it the shadows cast by war, the unmistakable marks left by the changing position of

women in society, the expansion of the notion of what it means to be “European” and of course a number of great sporting performances, one can see traces of these when you go through the history of the European Athletics Championships. But, most of all, a look back at the history

of the event reveals the ever-growing popularity of European Athletics. Here are some of the milestones that have been integral to the making of the championships:

Your Sport for Life

6

Torino 1934Luigi Beccali delighted the home fans by winning the 1500m to become the sport’s fi rst ever European champion. Germany and Finland dominated the 1st European Athletics Championships in which 23 countries participated. Torino also saw the fi rst world record at the European Athletics Championships when Matti Järvinen (FIN) won the Javelin with a throw of 76.66m.

Oslo 1946The Netherland’s Francina “Fanny” Elsje Blankers-Koen started her collection of numerous titles by winning the 80m hurdles in Oslo. Nicknamed ‘the Flying Housewife’, Koen went on to win four Olympic titles, fi ve European titles and 58 Dutch championships, and set or tied 12 world records.

Budapest 1966One of the most dominating athletes of all time, Irena Szewiñska of Poland won three gold medals (200m, Long Jump

and 4X100m relay) and one silver (100m). By the European championships in Prague in 1978 she had increased her total of European championships medals to a record-breaking 10; she won seven medals, among them three gold, at four Olympic Games.

Prague 1978Four world records were registered in the women’s events during the championships. East Germany’s Marita Koch took the women’s 400m taking the discipline to an all together new level after she ran the fi rst sub 49 second performance for one lap (48.94). High jumper Sara Simeoni (ITA) had to equal her own world record of 2.01m to win over Rosemarie Ackermann (GDR). Tatyana Zelentsova (USSR) ran 54.89 to break the 400m hurdles world record and the fourth record was delivered by long jumper Vilma Bardauskiene (USSR), who jumped 7.09m in the qualifying round for the record and won the fi nal with a superb 6.88m.

Athens 1982In one of the biggest upsets in the history of the championships Germany’s Hans-Peter Ferner defeated the then world record holder Sebastian Coe of Great Britain in the men’s 800m race. Briton Daley Thomson won his fi rst European title with a new world record of 8744 points, adding 21 points to the previous Decathlon record of Jürgen Hingsen (FRG) who came second.

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Your Sport for Life

www.european-athletics.org

Carolina KlüftPaula Radcliffe

7

Stuttgart 1986 Four world and two European records highlighted the championships. East Germany’s Heike Drechsler equalled the existing 200m world record with 21.71 and Marina Stepanova (USSR) lowered the existing 400m hurdles world record of Sabine Busch (GDR) to 53.32 by beating her into second place. Fatima Whitbread (GBR) set a Javelin world record (77.44m) in her qualifi cation group while Sebastian Coe (GBR) eventually won a European title, beating off team mates Tom McKean and Steve Cram.

Sergey Bubka (USSR) defeated his elder brother Vasiliy to win the gold medal in the Pole Vault.

Split 1990The French 4x100m relay team of Max Morinière, Daniel Sangouma, Jean-Charles Trouabal, Bruno Marie-Rose created a sensation breaking the six-year-old world record set by the US team at the

1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles with 37.79.

Helsinki 1994Sonia O’Sullivan won the fi rst ever Irish gold medal in a running event in the 3000m. Spain’s Marathon men Martin Fiz, Diego Garcia and Alberto Juzdado completed a clean sweep winning the gold, silver and bronze medal respectively.

Budapest 1998Christine Arron of France won the 100m, setting a new European record of 10.73 in the process, while Ireland’s Sonia O’Sullivan dominated both the 5000m and the 10000m. With jumps of 7.16m in the second and third round, Heike Drechsler (GER) won the Long Jump for the fourth consecutive time. Three British athletes broke championship records to win gold medals: Darren Campbell in the 100m (10.04); Jonathan Edwards in the Triple Jump (17.99m); Steve Backley (GBR)

in the Javelin in both the qualifying round (87.45m) and in the fi nal (89.72m).

Munich 2002Great Britain’s Paula Radcliffe led the 10000m from the start and, amid torrential rain, set a new European record of 30:01.09. Steve Backley won the Javelin (88.54m) and became the fi rst British athlete in history to achieve four consecutive European gold medals. There was a historic dead heat in the men’s 1500m when France’s Mehdi Baala and Spain Reyes Estevez had to share the gold medal. 19-year-old Caroline Klüft (SWE) enthralled the crowd by setting a new world junior record in the Heptathlon, beating two-time European champion Sabine Braun (GER).

Göteborg 2006 Portugal’s Francis Obikwelu added the European title to his Olympic Games silver medal in Athens. The 27-year-old kicked off at a brilliant pace to win the 100m in 9.99 seconds and completed the sprinters’ double taking the 200m title with a national record of 20.01. Home stars Carolina Klüft and Christian Olsson withstood the pressure of expectations and produced dominating performances to take the gold medal in Heptathlon and Triple Jump respectively.

CHAMPIONSHIP MILESTONES

Your Sport for Life

Newsletter of European Athletics 1|10 INSIDE TRACK

INTERNET INITIATIVES

European Athletics Championships to offer rich multimedia experience

The 20th European Athletics

Championships, to be held

between 26 July and 1 August

in Barcelona, is poised to offer

an experience that athletics

fans will fondly remember

for years to come. The historic

Olympic Stadium that hosted

the Summer Games in 1992

is ready to host the best

athletes from across Europe.

Special care has been taken to ensure that every spectator, whether in the stadium or following the event on TV or online, experiences every bit of the action as it unfolds. A brand new webpage dedicated to Barcelona 2010 has been launched on our website www.european-athletics.org. The coverage will include daily reports, event-by-event updates, special features on the gold medal winners, live results, photo gallery and much more. One can also keep tabs on all the action by following us on social networking sites Facebook and Twitter or sharing sites YouTube and Flickr.

Courtesy of our long-standing partnership with the European Broadcasting Union, the championships will be streamed live on www.eurovision.net. Besides, athletics fans can also catch daily highlights and behind the scene action on a dedicated video channel on the European Athletics website. Audio interviews of athletes will be uploaded as they happen throughout the event. End-of-the-day audio wraps will also be available on www.european-athletics.org. At European Athletics we understand the value supporters bring to our sport. As the governing body of athletics on the continent, it is our priority to facilitate this symbiotic relationship of athletes and fans. For an athlete there is no bigger motivation than thousands of cheering fans in a stadium and, for a fan there is no bigger sight than seeing his or her favourite star in action.We hope that athletics supporters will enjoy the European Athletics Championships. Once again, we look forward to your valued feedback.

www.european-athletics.org8


Your Sport for Life

9www.european-athletics.org

European Athletics relives the journey of the European

Athletics Championships through the posters of the event

which came into being as an initiative of the International

Association of Athletics Federations’ (IAAF) European

Committee in 1933.

The inaugural edition of the European Athletics Championships were held in the Italian city of Torino in 1934 and ever since the championships was held been organised every four years, albeit with a few exceptions such as an like an eight-year break between 1938 and 1946 due to the Second World War and the championships of 1969 and 1971 when they were held in odd years for the fi rst time. The championships are set to enter a new ear with the introduction of a two-year circle for the event. For the fi rst the European Athletics Championships will be organised in an Olympic year in the Finnish capital of Helsinki in 2012.

CHAMPIONSHIP POSTERS

the

Missing posters:

1934 Torino, 1938 (Men) Paris,

1938 (Women) Vienna, 1950 Brussels

A trip down memory lane

IN Athleticsn A

Your Sport for Life


Here’s a quick introduction to the European

Athletics team who will be in Barcelona and

the inside track on what they are looking

forward to the most during the European

Athletics Championships – the biggest

athletics event of the year.

STAFF

Meet ‘Team European Athletics’ Hello, my name is ... Christian Milz

I’m from ... SwitzerlandMy job is ... Director GeneralMy favourite athlete is ... each athlete who shows an outstanding performance The events I’m most looking forward to are ... Decathlon and Heptathlon that will crown the genuine King and Queen of athletics in EuropeMy favourite things about Barcelona are … the Olympic Stadium, El Boqueria, Gaudi, Iniesta and Adrià

Hello, my name is ... Christiane Maillard I’m from ... SwitzerlandMy job is ... Corporate Services ManagerMy favourite athlete is … the rising star Christophe LemaîtreThe event I’m most looking forward to is ... the 100mMy favourite things about Barcelona are ... the tapas!

Hello, my name is ... Lars KaiserI’m from ... GermanyMy job is ... Sales & Marketing ManagerMy favourite athlete is ... Heike Drechsler The events I’m most looking forward to are ... the women’s High Jump and the relaysMy favourite things about Barcelona are ... the song of the B10 TV advert, sunshine, and beaches!

Hello, my name is ... Marcel WakimI’m from ... GermanyMy job is ... Competition ManagerMy favourite athlete is ... Manuel MartinezThe events I’m most looking forward to are ... the men’s middle distance racesMy favourite things about Barcelona are ... the food, the people and FC Barcelona (basketball!)

Hello, my name is ... Peter StaffordI’m from ... IrelandMy job is ... Projects ConsultantMy favourite athlete is ... David GillickThe events I’m most looking forward to are ... sprints and relaysMy favourite thing about Barcelona is ... sampling some of the well renowned party venues throughout the city

Hello, my name is ... Ede RutkovszkyI’m from ... HungaryMy job is ... Competition ConsultantMy favourite athlete is ... I don’t have a real favourite at the moment but I hope that all athletes give their best and achieve good results, especially the ones from Hungary The events I’m most looking forward to are ... the fi nals of the 100m in both genders and the men’s Javelin throw My favourite things about Barcelona are ... the football club of the city and the beaches

www.european-athletics.org

Your Sport for LifeSTAFF

Hello, my name is ... James MulliganI’m from ... EnglandMy job is ... Communication ManagerMy favourite athlete is ... Phillips IdowuThe events I’m most looking forward to are ... the relays.My favourite things about Barcelona are ... the beach parties and watching Barcelona FC!

Hello, my name is ... Christelle Bezençon I’m from ... SwitzerlandMy job is ... Event ConsultantMy favourite athlete is ... Yelena IsinbayevaThe event I’m most looking forward to is ... the Pole VaultMy favourite things about Barcelona are ... the famous tapas, Parc Güell and the nice weather!

Hello, my name is … Maaike MayorI’m from … Switzerland and the NetherlandsMy job is … Administrative CoordinatorMy favourite athlete is … Karoline Bjerkli GrøvdalThe event I’m most looking forward to is … the Long JumpMy favourite things about Barcelona are … Parc Güell, La Rambla and nice food

Hello, my name is ... Jérôme ParmentierI’m from ... FranceMy job is ... Event ManagerMy favourite athletes are ... the decathletes and heptathletesThe events I’m most looking forward to are ... the 100m/110m hurdlesMy favourite things about Barcelona are ... the food, the weather and running along the beach!

Hello, my name is ... Bill GladI’m from ... USAMy job is ... Development ManagerMy favourite athlete is ... no one in particularThe events I’m most looking forward to are ... all of themMy favourite thing about Barcelona is ... B10!

Hello, my name is ... Sandrine GlacierI’m from ... FranceMy job is ... Competition ConsultantMy favourite athlete is ... Romain MesnilThe event I’m most looking forward to is ... Pole VaultMy favourite things about Barcelona are ... Lionel Messi, beaches and tapas.

Hello, my name is ... Aditya KumarI’m from ... IndiaMy job is ... Communication ConsultantMy favourite athletes are ... Ariane Friedrich and Tomasz MajewskiThe events I’m most looking forward to are ... High Jump and Shot PutMy favourite things about Barcelona are ... Gaudi and the vibrancy of the city

Hello, my name is … Bernadette Brun Brenger I’m from … FranceMy job is … Senior Event ConsultantMy favourite athlete is … Carolina KlüftThe events I’m most looking forward to are … the relays My favourite thing about Barcelona is … the way of life

INSIDE TRACK 1|10 Newsletter of European Athletics 11


Your Sport for Life HELSINKI 2012

Helsinki, one of only four cities in the world to have hosted the Olympic Games, the IAAF World Athletics Championships and European Athletics Championships, is up for a new challenge in 2012. The legendary Helsinki Olympic Stadium will be at the heart of the launch of a new tradition as it hosts the inaugural Olympic year European Athletics Championships.

“Once again it is for Helsinki to offer something unique to athletics. We hosted the fi rst edition of IAAF World Championships in 1983, and installed a brand new event presentation system during the 10th IAAF World Athletics Championships in 2005. Now we are working hard to create a fresh, modern and fascinating start for the new format of European Athletics Championships in 2012,” said Antti Pihlakoski, the president

of the Local Organising Committee for Helsinki 2012 and also a member of the European Athletics Council.

The organisers strongly believe that the athletics scene on the continent is now going through a decisive moment.

“Based on the distribution of medals at the Olympic Games and World Championships, one can see that European athletics has been going through a period of decline the last decade. European countries share a common responsibility of developing our sport through the new format of European Athletics Championships,” said Pihlakoski.

“It is crucial for athletics in Europe that all the European countries send their best athletes to Helsinki,” he added.

HELSINKI 2012 –HELSINKI 2012 –LET THE NEW TRADITION BEGINLET THE NEW TRADI

Mr. Esa Honkalehto, General Secretary of the Helsinki 2012 LOC, underlined that the European Athletics Championships will add value to the Olympic Games.

“During ordinary seasons all the best European athletes are prepared to compete in European Team Championships in late June. In 2012, there will be no European Team Championships and just the European Athletics Championships, so it won’t cause extra stress for the athletes.

“Furthermore, only the very best European athletes will qualify for the Olympics. For the rest, Helsinki 2012 will be the most important competition of the season. And for the Olympic qualifi ers, what would be a better way to fi nd peak form than having a quality international competition before the Olympic Games,” said Honkalehto.


Your Sport for Life


HELSINKI 2012

Finnish athletics heritage

Athletics is one of the most traditional and popular sports in Finland. It is the biggest individual sport in the country and in the top three among all sports. The fi nal of the men’s Javelin throw in major championships is regularly one of the most watched TV programs of the year, gathering an unbelievable 40-50% of Finns in front of TV screens.

“During the last 50 years we have hosted fi ve major athletics championships at the Helsinki Olympic Stadium, and every time the tickets have been sold out. Finnish people love athletics and there are no two words about it,” said Pihlakoski.

To strengthen the popularity of athletics, the LOC plans to organise a multi-dimensional athletics festival on the sidelines of the European Athletics Championships.

“We are planning to organise an international youth event that will encompass both competitions and education. In addition it will have competitions for disabled athletes, and a mass sport

event for everyone interested in athletics,” he said.

“This is how we get people from all walks of life involved in the European Athletics Championships.”

An unforgettable experiencefor athletes and fans

The championships will offer a unique experience for the participating athletes and fans in the tribunes of the Olympic Stadium. “We will offer short commuting distances, clean and safe environment, and punctual organisation that will accord highest priority to ensuring comfort for athletes. For fans we have developed a high quality

event presentation system that together with the facilities at the renovated Olympic Stadium will offer perfect surroundings for relishing athletics,” Pihlakoski promised.

Pihlakoski fi rmly believes that Finland will host a world-class event and an unforgettable athletics festival.

“We will do our job with quality, style and great passion for athletics. We are ready to start a new tradition that will be on par with the best sporting events in the world. This is a golden opportunity for all European nations to put athletics back to the place where it belongs – in the hearts and minds of the people of Europe,” said Pihlakoski.

By Mika Noronen

LET THE NEW TRADITION BEGINTION BEGIN

European Athletics Championships 27.6.2012–1.7.2012 at Helsinki Olympic Stadium

New concept of 5 competition days including 4 exciting evening sessions with fi nals 50 countries participating Around 1,500 athletes 160,000 spectators 1,000 volunteers

One of the most followed sporting event in Europe Televised in 40-50 countries approx. 300 million TV viewers (news excluded)

Around 1,800 media representatives from 45-50 countries

HELSINKI FACTSAdded value for Finland: approximately €30m Approx €10m income through taxes for Finland and the city of Helsinki

Added employment opportunities for the inhabitants of Helsinki region


Your Sport for Life ECH 2014 AND BEYOND

Long-term planning paving way for successful future eventsZurich became the fi rst city

to get the rights to host

the European Athletics

Championships in 2014 under

European Athletics’ new

long-term planning system for

event allocation introduced in

2009.

The process generated strong interest among Member Federations in hosting European Athletics’ fl agship events up to and including 2018.

The Member Federations were requested to submit their plans for the hosting of events over an eight-year period with the goal of allowing them to think well in advance for hosting European Athletics events.

“I am very pleased that the vast majority of our Member Federations supported this endeavour by informing us of their future bidding intentions,” said European Athletics President Hansjörg Wirz. “This long-term planning allows European Athletics and potential candidates a clear vision of the allocation of future events, while ensuring that facilities within Europe are used in a proper way and benefi tting public bodies that have fi nanced the facilities.”

This way European Athletics is also able to give orientation among interested parties and react well in advance if there are no serious and qualifi ed potential candidates interested in hosting a particular event – avoiding the disappointment and frustration of Member Federations and cities who may not be successful in bidding for a certain event.

The European Athletics Bidding Manual for events has also been updated to provide a more comprehensive document to assist Member Federations in their applications, and in addition the concept of the bidding seminars that Member Federations must attend as part of the regulations for top events was changed to make it more of a promotional tool to gain support of the cities.

The timelines for the different stages of the bidding process have now been formalised and communicated, providing the bidding cities with enough time and support to deliver comprehensive applications.

The fi rst restructured seminar took place at the end of 2009, when the city of Zurich took its fi rst steps in preparing its bid for the 2014 championships that proved successful at the end of the bidding process in May 2010.

Given the eight-year scope of the questionnaire, an exclusive candidature preparation day has been planned during the 2010 European Athletics Championships in Barcelona for Member Federations that have indicated an interest in hosting the European Athletics Championships of 2016 and 2018 and the 2015 and 2017 European Athletics Indoor Championships. This will give a unique insight into the organisation and delivery of these major championships.

For more information regarding the long-term planning for events, please contact European Athletics Projects Consultant Peter Stafford at:[email protected]

A toast to Zurich’s successful bid for the 2014 European Athletics Championships


Russia returns to number one

Russia emphatically won the 2010 SPAR European Team Championships with a huge score of 379.5 points across the two days in Bergen, Norway, winning by a massive margin of 62.5 points.

In the world’s premier athletics competition between countries, Russia consequently came out top of the rankings which embraces all 50 of European Athletics’ Member Federations and were crowned as Europe’s top athletics nation.

“The unpredictability of a team’s performance, the national pride felt and shown as countries compete against their rivals, and the drama of the revamped regulations made for compelling viewing throughout the weekend,” said European Athletics President Hansjörg Wirz, refl ecting on the innovative competition that has men and women competing as one team, promotion and relegation battles between the four leagues, and a table that ranks countries from fi rst to 50th.

Russia won 13 events out of the 40 contested in Bergen but another crucial factor in their success was the all round consistence of the squad with top three fi nishes in 25 disciplines.

The Russian women were particularly big contributors of points with only three athletes failing to get on the podium

Great Britain fi nished second with 317 points while the 2009 champions Germany, after a poor fi rst day when they languished back in seventh place, rallied on the Sunday to fi nish third with 304.5 points.

Russia made an early start in their bid for supremacy and took the lead after just the

sixth event on Saturday. They were never headed for the rest of the weekend.

The avalanche of victories started when Russian team captain and former Pole Vault world record holder Svetlana Feofanova won her specialist event with 4.65m and Yelena Zadorozhnaya quickly followed in her footsteps with maximum points in the women’s 3000m.

Alexandr Shustov and Pavel Shulin took the men’s High Jump and Long Jump respectively – the latter jumping a wind-assisted 8.26m – Kseniya Ustalova and Nataliya Antyukh won the women’s 400m and 400m hurdles, while Yuliya Zarudneva produced a brilliant solo gun-to-tape

Russia and European Athletics were the big winners at the second

edition of the SPAR European Team Championships.

Your Sport for LifeEVENT REVIEW

Your Sport for Life

Newsletter of European Athletics 1/10 INSIDE TRACKwww.european-athletics.org16

EVENT REVIEW

effort to take the honours in the women’s 3000m steeplechase.

Russia’s women’s 4x100m team, the 2008 Olympic Games gold medallists, then took fi rst place in the penultimate event of the fi rst day, winning in a European-leading 42.98.

Building on their eight victories on Saturday, Russia added another fi ve wins on the second day.

The 2004 Olympic Games 800m gold medallist Yuriy Borzakovskiy had delayed his 2010 outdoor debut over two laps of the track until he arrived in Bergen but produced a confi dent victory in 1:45.41.

Barely had people had time to draw breath after Borzakovskiy’s audacious run from the front before Tatyana Dektyareva went to her marks for the next event of the track and sped to a European-leading 100m hurdles time of 12.68.

Anna Avdeyeva later won the Shot Put to add another 12 points to the Russian total before their 4x400m Relay teams fi nished off the weekend in fi ne style.

The women’s 4x400m relay team delivered the expected victory in the penultimate event of the championships. With Antyukh and Ustalova on the last two legs, a win was highly likely but the quartet still showed their class by clocking a world-leading 3:23.76

Inspired by their women’s performance, the men’s 4x400m team brought the curtain down at the championships in impressive fashion by winning in 3:01.72.

Among the other highlights over the weekend was Dwain Chambers’ 100m in 9.99, the Briton blasting his way down the track at Fana Stadium to become the fi rst European under the 10-second barrier this year.

There was another European-leading mark in the women’s 200m when Ukrainian sprinter Yelizaveta Bryzhina produced a stunning burst of acceleration off the bend to win in a new personal best of 22.71.

Dramatic upsets were on the agenda as well.

Perhaps the biggest surprise was delivered when the Ukraine’s Viktor Kuznetsov pulled off a shock win in the Triple Jump.

His opening jump of 17.26m, a personal best by three centimetres, was enough to leave Great Britain’s Phillips Idowu and France’s in-form Teddy Tamgho, the current outdoor and indoor world champions respectively, trailing in his wake.

Germany’s Mattias De Zordo also upset the form book in the Javelin, throwing 83.80m to leave the host’s hero Andreas Thorkildsen, still recovering from a slight groin problem, having to settle for second place. It was the current Olympic, world

and European champion’s fi rst defeat of the season.

Greece, Norway and Finland occupied the last three places in Bergen and were relegated. The trio will compete in the First League next year and will be replaced by the promoted Czech Republic, Sweden and Portugal, who all bounce straight back after dropping down a division 12 months ago.

European athletics fans will also have a trip to Scandinavia in their diaries’ sights again in 12 months time as the Swedish capital Stockholm will be the venue for the 2011 SPAR European Team Championships.


Your Sport for Life


SUSTAINABILITY PROJECT

B10 used the European Athletics Sustainable Sports Event Toolkit (SSET) – an online “how to” guide for organisers – to identify ways of reducing the environmental impact of the 20th European Athletics Championships.

Sustainability initiatives at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona include a “no paper policy” in the VIP area. Following suggestions from guests at previous events, no printed copies of start lists, results and other information will be distributed in the VIP area, thereby saving thousands of sheets of paper and reducing waste.

There will be extra CIS (Commentator Information Systems) throughout the VIP area so that guests are still able to get the up-to-date information they need to fully enjoy the competition.

All start lists, results and other information will be delivered quickly and effi ciently to journalists in the main press centre and media tribune – but only on request so as to further reduce paper waste.

Another initiative will be the sale of reusable biodegradable cups with a B10 design at public bars and the market square. The cups will also be available in the VIP area, and guests can drop the cups in the recycle containers after use.

Barcelona 2010 will also offer rubbish separation bins and stadium waste will also be recycled. Roof water from the stadium will be used to water the grass. Flyers and promotion material for the event are being printed on recyclable paper.

European Athletics and B10 take responsibilities seriously

B10, whose initiatives will help change awareness of sustainability in sports events in Spain, will upload its experiences and recommendations for future organisers on the SSET website.

European Athletics launched the SSET in 2009. It was co-developed with the International Academy of Sports Science and Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland, the International Olympic Committee and the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Organising Committee.

More than 14 athletics events across Europe have used or are planning on using the tool, including the 2011 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Paris and Athletissima, the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Lausanne.

European Athletics green logo marks Earth Day 2010European Athletics launched a new “green” logo in April to refl ect its commitment to environmental responsibility and sustainability.

The launch coincided with “Earth Day 2010”, which is celebrated in more than 175 countries around the world to raise awareness and appreciation for the earth’s environment.

The classic European Athletics logo with the signature slogan “Your Sport for Life” in the colour green has been designed to create a consistent brand identity for sustainability initiatives developed by the continental governing body.

“This logo underlines our green values and highlights the sustainability initiative we introduced last year,” said European Athletics Director General Christian Milz.

“Through our commitment and leadership in this and other areas such as health, fi tness, education and personal development, our sport can add to the quality of life for millions across Europe”.

European Athletics and the B10 organising

committee are committed to doing their bit

to make our sport sustainable and reduce its

impact on the environment.

European Athletics Director General Christian Milz said, “It’s been gratifying to see how many events have already expressed an interest in the SSET, which we are making available to our partners free of charge.”

“I believe that in the coming years the SSET will help to make athletics events across Europe more sustainable thereby adding to the already strong positive image our sport enjoys with the public”.

SSET shortlisted for 2010 Beyond Sport Award

The SSET project has been named as a fi nalist in the Sport for the Environment category for the prestigious 2010 Beyond Sport Awards, which will be presented in Chicago, USA, 27-30 September.

Beyond Sport is a global organisation that promotes the use of sport to drive positive social change across the world. Shortlisted projects for the awards were chosen from more than 350 entries spanning 115 countries.

The SSET helps sport organisations develop practical strategies and manage their environmental, social and economic impacts and opportunities.

Your Sport for Life


YOUNG LEADERS FORUM & ONLINE COMMUNITY

To check out the European Athletics Young Leaders Community visit www.athleticscommunity.org.

LookingThe European Athletics-

UNESCO Young Leaders Forum

will give young volunteers

a taste of the European

Athletics Championships

and a chance to help shape

how the sport engages youth

in the digital age.

for the futu

It has become a tradition for great sports events, including the Olympic Games, to organise camps for young people alongside their competition programmes. The 2010 European Athletics Championships in Barcelona will take this concept to a new dimension.

The European Athletics-UNESCO Young Leaders Forum from 26-29 July will see 100 volunteers aged 18-26 selected by the Member Federations enjoy the unique atmosphere of the championships in the evenings after spending the day-time hours working hard to develop their skills and fi nd ways for athletics to maintain and increase its relevance for young people across Europe.

Organised by European Athletics, the B10 Organising Committee and UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientifi c and Cultural Organization), the forum is a follow-up to the successful European Youth Forum that was staged in conjunction with the 2006 European Athletics Championships in Göteborg. It is also another milestone in the deepening relationship between European Athletics and UNESCO.

In addition to the contributions of the organising partners, the forum has been given fi nancial support by the marketing agencies ECM2 and Dentsu.

Gabriella Szabo

“We see this forum as a key element of European Athletics’ ‘Your Sport for Life’ strategy,” says Director General Christian Milz. “It is a chance to promote dialogue, enhance the personal development of the participants and fi nd out what they want from athletics.”

“Importantly, we will be working together with them to create an ongoing community of young leaders that will help us deliver the values and practical benefi ts we can bring to society in areas such as education, health and physical fi tness.”

The forum, which takes place at the Instiut Nacional d’Educació Fisica de Catalunya (INEFC) just a few hundred metres from the Olympic Stadium on Barcelona’s Montjuic, will feature a line-up of big name speakers from athletics, including Olympic gold medallists Gabriella Szabo, Sergey Bubka and Sebastian Coe and world and European champion Steve Cram, who are expected to talk about the values for sport, leadership and personal development.


Your Sport for Life


YOUNG LEADERS FORUM & ONLINE COMMUNITY

There will also be workshops that focus on the newly launched European Athletics Young Leaders Community, a social network website that promotes athletics-oriented community projects.

“The participants will get a chance to shape the community and develop some IT-based tools for volunteering, improving their skills and CVs and getting more out of athletics,” says Milz. “It’s an exciting project that will open up a new way for the sport to engage with young people and form life-long relationships.”

Prior to their arrival in Barcelona, the participants contributed to four weekly online discussions, moderated by UNESCO staff, on the topics to be raised in the forum. They also prepared displays about athletics in their countries, which will be exhibited in the INEFC during the forum, and some have even produced videos about their work in the sport.

For more information on the European Athletics-UNESCO Young Leaders Forum visit www.european-athletics.org.

UNESCO and European AthleticsThe United Nations Educational, Scientifi c and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) is the lead agency for sport and physical education in the United Nations system. In 2006 it signed a unique Memorandum of Understanding with European Athletics to cooperate on joint projects.

The memorandum recognised the importance of athletics as a participation sport and for its role in physical education and for its potential to contribute to the well-being of young people. UNESCO also recognises that sport – and athletics in particular - can provide an effective communication platform for raising public awareness about education and other issues.

Throughout the relationship UNESCO has enjoyed valuable visible presence at all major European Athletics events, which has helped it to promote its messages to the public. The two organisations have also cooperated on the following projects:

2006: European Youth Forum, Göteborg, SWE2007: Promotion of the ratifi cation of the UN Convention on Doping In Sport2007: Young Athlete Anti-Doping Education, Hengelo, NED, and Debrecen, HUN 2009: Young Athlete Anti-Doping Education, Novi Sad, SRB, and Kaunas, LTU 2010: European Athletics-UNESCO Young Leaders Forum, Barcelona, ESP

Sergey Bubka

Sebastian Coe

ure leaders

Your Sport for Life


DEVELOPMENT

Details of the approved projects are as follows:

Project Leader: Fédération Française d’AthlétismeField of Action: Promotion of Health-Enhancing Physical ActivityPartners: European Athletics and fi ve Member FederationsEU Grant: €230,000

Project Leader: Royal Dutch Athletics Federation (Atletikunie)Field of Action: Promotion of Gender Equality in SportPartners: European Athletics and eight Member FederationsEU Grant: €215,486

Project Leader: EU Offfi ce of the European Olympic CommitteesField of Action: Promotion of Education and Training in SportPartners: European Athletics and ten organisations from outside athleticsEU Grant: €201,102

EU athletics projects making progressThe three European Union projects in sport in which European

Athletics is a key partner are well underway, with kick-off

meetings having been held for each of them and partnerships

agreed with the involved Member Federations.

The French athletics federation, leader of the Athle Santé project for the promotion of health enhancing physical activity, is currently working in four main areas: creating a teaching plan for coaches about working in the general fi tness fi eld, training a new group of coaches specifi cally focused on the health and fi tness market, developing a series of health circuits with local authorities and federations, and organising information days about health and fi tness.

The FFA is working with counterparts in Italy, France, Spain, Germany and Hungary on these topics.

As part of its ‘Bridging the Leadership Gender Gap in European Athletics’ project, the Royal Dutch Athletics Federation is planning to conduct a global survey of the athletics population in October and has scheduled a special training seminar for up to 50 future women’s leaders in Evian, France, through 4-9 October.

Nine countries so far are included in the survey plan. Other European Athletics Member Federations that want their country to be included in the survey should contact Development Manager Bill Glad at:[email protected].

The EU Offi ce of the European Olympic Committee, meanwhile, is working with sports organisations, athletes, businesses and educational institutions to develop information on best practice for preparing athletes for their career post-athletics by promoting the concept of “dual careers” through the Athletes2Business project. They are creating a network and database of best practice and working on improving access for athletes to the labour market. The EOC has arranged study visits and workshops for athletes around Europe that will continue till the end of the year as part of its promotion of education and training in sport.

European Athletics’ partnership with these EU funded projects follows the European Commissions’ fi rst-ever call for project proposals in the fi eld of sport.The projects were among just 18 selected from a total of 207 proposals and are receiving more than €645,000 euros in fi nancial support.

Reports on the progress of the projects, which must be completed by early 2011, will be featured on the European Athletics website.


Your Sport for Life


THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

The creation of the Diamond League has also brought with it greater responsibilities and opportunities for the continental federations to develop and enhance their own series of top level one-day meetings. European Athletics has been a historic leader in this respect and has given recognition to meetings for more than a decade, with other continental federations following their example in more recent times.

In 2006, to provide greater recognition and visibility, the leading European Athletics meetings were given the status of Premium Meetings with the second tier originally being named Permit Meetings before being re-branded last year as Classic Meetings. The 2010 calendar consists of 11 European Athletics Outdoor Premium Meetings and 16 European Athletics Outdoor Classic Meetings.

José Luis de Carlos (pictured), European Athletics fi rst vice-president, has been instrumental in helping defi ne how the Premium Meetings and Classic Meetings fi t into the new global one-day meeting structure. The Spaniard, who is also general director of his country’s athletics federation, offered his thoughts recently on what still needs to be done to enhance the Premium and Classic Meetings brand even further.

“I’m pleased to see that the IAAF Diamond League has the same orientation that we have decided upon for the European Athletics meetings, the way that 50 per cent of the main championship programme should be at each meeting so that there is no overlap between events and meetings.

European Athletics building Premium and Classic Meetings brand

“This is a philosophy that we had developed at the European Athletics Convention in Amsterdam two years ago. Now we have to work hard to develop and integrate what I call the ‘pyramid’, that is with the Diamond League at the top, then the IAAF World Challenge meetings, then the European Athletics Premium and Classic Meetings.“We are trying to have the same rules as the IAAF events, although obviously we can’t be the same as them in terms of prize money, but having the same kind of rationale with the spread of the events will provide opportunities for many European athletes that they didn’t have before.“In the past, if you were a 100m or 1500m runner, you had quite a lot of opportunities to compete. It wasn’t the same if you competed in, let’s say, the women’s 3000m steeplechase or the men’s Discus. Now, with the new system that has been adopted by the IAAF and European Athletics meetings, we are offering more possibilities to Europe’s leading athletes in every discipline.” De Carlos also took a look into his crystal ball and outlined European Athletics’ broad strategy for one-day meetings in the immediate future.“Our main goal was to create a coherent system and structure and to have the top athletes competing at these meetings on a regular basis.“Our target now has to be to build up the quality of the individual meetings themselves. There are many things that we have to try to do simultaneously but there are three key points that European Athletics is looking at for the future.“We have to try to provide fi nancial support for the meetings, so we are looking for sponsors. I have to be honest and say that we have been unlucky that the European-wide economic crisis has happened at a time when we believe that we are getting the right structure for the European Athletics one-day meetings.“It has been diffi cult to get sponsorship for the Premium and Classic Meetings and this is the next challenge. This is an important way in which we can enhance the image and brand of European Athletics and support the meetings.“Secondly, we also have to improve event presentation and get meeting organisers thinking hard about this issue, which is why we have planned the fi rst European Athletics seminar for event presentation (this was scheduled for 24-25 April in Brussels and is now rescheduled for later this year because of the European airspace closures following the volcanic eruption in Iceland). We will have experts in this fi eld there and bring together many of the

Premium and Classic Meeting organisers. “This is very important as we can show how the meetings can be more attractive to TV viewers and local spectators, and how we can increase the overall quality of the presentation.“The themes will include how you can integrate the meeting programme with the TV broadcast and we also insist that meetings are no longer than two hours. It’s no longer useful to have meetings that are three or four hours long because European Athletics meetings are fi ghting with other sports and other spectacles for the attention of the TV viewer, who has many options that were not there a decade ago.“Thirdly, we want to have many more European athletes competing in European Athletics meetings.“The rules are now very clear about this. In each event, no more than three athletes from any individual countries can compete. This ensures that, for instance, there are not 10 runners from Kenya in a 5000m race. Combined with this rule is another one which states the minimum number of countries from Europe which have to be present.“In the past there has been a perception that athletes from outside Europe were steadily increasing at European Athletics meetings and this, in turn, restricted opportunities for European athletes. We want to reverse this trend,” explained De Carlos.De Carlos is quietly confi dent that in three to fi ve years European Athletics will have a one-day meeting structure in place that athletes, offi cials and fans alike will be able to say has gone from being good to great.

This year has seen major changes in the structure of elite athletics meetings,

both in Europe and worldwide, thanks to the launch of the IAAF Diamond

League. Europe has a central role as 10 of the 14 Diamond League meetings in

2010 are being held on the continent.


Your Sport for Life

“Without youth, the rest of athletics is meaningless. We, in Europe, need to develop a coherent, co-ordinated and global strategic approach to youth development.”

Those were the words of Lord Sebastian Coe in his keynote address at the fi rst European Athletics Youth Conference in December 2008. Back then, in Oslo, more than 130 representatives from 46 European countries and fi ve countries outside of Europe discussed youth athletics and ways the sport can attract and retain young people.

The conference, entitled ‘Bringing Athletics to New Generations,’ drew the largest number of participants ever for a European Athletics educational activity. In addition to the Europeans present, there were also participants from Jamaica, New Zealand, Singapore, Brazil and Surinam.

DIRECTOR GENERAL’S STATE OF SPORT

In his conference introduction in Norway, European Athletics President Hansjörg Wirz presented an overview of European Athletics’ strategy to use the values of athletics to engage young people and other target groups in the sport under our slogan ‘Your Sport for Life’.

This was a signifi cant fi rst step for European Athletics in taking a leading role within the sport in creating a unifi ed approach towards young people.

What needs to be addressed is how to engage and retain school boys and girls, students and amateur athletes, and how to convince parents that athletics is the sport for their kids.

During and since the inaugural conference, European Athletics has listened to the ideas of a lot of young coaches, youth programme managers at Member

Federations, federation chiefs and young leaders involved in athletics. We have been encouraged by the quality of their input and by the enthusiasm of them in facing the challenge of bringing more and more young people into athletics and retaining them.

We have used this valuable information to help shape our youth strategy and a priority in 2010 is the implementation of this. Indeed, we have formed a youth strategy working group to facilitate this.

Lord Coe has been a strong advocate of taking note of changes in youth culture and engaging and integrating the next generation of athletics followers through the use of modern communication tools such as new media.

The European Athletics-UNESCO Young Leaders Forum in Barcelona during the European Athletics Championships is one such initiative that will help us shape how our sport engages youth in the digital age.

This forum is a key element of European Athletics’ ‘Your Sport for Life’ strategy – a chance to promote dialogue, enhance the personal development of the 100 participants from all over

Making athletics

‘Your Sport for Life’ for future generations


Your Sport for Life

Europe and fi nd out what they want from athletics.

One of the legacies of the forum will be an ongoing community of young leaders that will help us deliver the values and practical benefi ts we can bring to society in areas such as education, health and physical fi tness.

There will be workshops in Barcelona that focus on the newly launched European Athletics Young Leaders Community (www.athleticscommunity.org), a social network website that promotes athletics-oriented community projects.

Furthermore, we continue to increase our presence on social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. We want to make sure information on our events and our activities is available

DIRECTOR GENERAL’S STATE OF SPORT

on multiple platforms so that a younger generation used to being able to choose how and when they engage with sport has the opportunity to do so.

European Athletics is also looking at forward-thinking events to increase the appeal of athletics, not only to different groups of youngsters but also different social and professional groups. We are beginning a feasibility study for a European Athletics Relay Festival, similar to the supremely successful Penn Relays in Philadelphia. It would be fantastic to see an equivalent event in Europe, with hundreds of relays involving thousands of athletes watched by fans packing out a stadium.

We of course have our European Athletics Junior Championships and European Athletics U23 Championships – both

extremely important developmental steps in young athletes’ careers. The next editions in 2011 are in Tallinn, Estonia, and Ostrava, Czech Republic, respectively.

We continue to innovate. Our competition structure is under review as part of our youth strategy working group. A survey has been sent out to Member Federations to evaluate the current international competition structure for athletes under 18, to consider changes to the European Athletics programme to add value in terms of athlete development and to determine the best way for Member Federations to work within the adopted system. The European Youth Olympic Trials in Moscow in May 2010 will also be considered within this analysis alongside our other events.

Innovation in our existing events and also exciting new events are important, of course, but this must be backed up with a strong youth strategy – one that includes the engagement of youth of Europe in ways they understand and can relate to – in order that we are able to bring athletics to new generations. Indeed, we continue to work hard towards our mission of making athletics “Your Sport for Life.”

Your Sport for Life


2010 AWARDS NIGHT

Every year during this prestigious gala night, a number of awards are presented to reward the best of European athletics:

The European Athlete of the Year (men/women)

The European Athletics Rising Star of the Year (men/women)

The European Athletics Women’s Leadership Awards (every two years)

The European Athletics Innovation Awards (every two years)

European Athletics will shortlist the nominations for all the categories mentioned above (this year will be the turn of the Innovation Awards after the Women’s Leadership Awards in 2009). The

Time to honour the best of European athletics After the curtain falls on the European Athletics Championships Barcelona 2010 on 1 August,

it will soon be time to honour the best of European athletics at the European Athletics Awards

Night presented by MONDO during the European Athletics Convention in mid-October. This

time around it is hosted in Belgrade, Serbia.

lists for the athlete awards will be compiled by selecting the top European athlete in each event, based largely on performances at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona along with a number of other European Athletics and IAAF events.

The winners of the European Athlete of the Year will be decided by votes from the general public, media, European Athletics Member Federations and an expert panel, with the results from each group of voters counting for one quarter of the athlete’s fi nal score. Each voter must select their fi ve preferred athletes and rank them in order of priority.

After thousands of votes were cast in 2009, Triple Jump world champion Phillips

Idowu of Great Britain and world 3000m steeplechase champion Marta Domínguez of Spain emerged as Europe’s fi nest athletes of the year.

The great honour of being named the winners of the European Athletics Rising Star Awards fell to French sprint sensation Christophe Lemaître and Norway’s middle-distance prodigy Karoline Bjerkeli Grøvdal. These awards recognised their spectacular performances throughout 2009.

All four winners were presented with their awards by European Athletics President Hansjörg Wirz at a special European Athletics Awards Night presented by MONDO, organised during the European Athletics Convention in Budapest, Hungary.

eaa_inside_1-2010

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