For the second consecutive year, Peace and Sport participated in SportAccord Convention and the Alliance of Independent recognized Members of Sport (AIMS) Sport Festival “United Through Sports”. Peace and Sport gave an inspiring speech on the inclusive role of sport during the festival opening conference, following speeches by Thomas Bach, IOC President and Ban Ki-Moon, the eighth Secretary-General of the United Nations, on 7 May in Gold Coast, Australia.

The “United Through Sport” Festival was established by AIMS in 2017 and officially inaugurated in 2018. One of the outstanding successes of the past edition was the inclusion of refugee and disadvantaged youths into the festival. In 2019, the festival in parallel to the SportAccord Convention and gathers many organizations using the ability sport has, to bring unity and peace to a divided world. The theme of the festival is “United Through Youth” and aims to tackle how the structured practice of sport can help to educate younger generations on sustainable peace.

During the opening conference of the festival, Joël Bouzou, President and Founder of Peace and Sport and President of the World Olympians Association, declared:

“Olympians and non-Olympians have the capacity to use their fame and popularity among youngsters in order to transmit values. This is the reason why, today more than ever, it is important to train athletes for excellence in their sport performance, but it is essential to train them as role models. We need to highlight the best practices and the most socially committed athletes in order to inspire the youth.”

Sport Accord Gold Coast 2019 is held in Australia from 5 to 10 May. It is the world sport and business summit. It is focused on driving positive change internationally and dedicated to engaging and connecting international federations, rights holders, organizing committees, cities, press and media, businesses and other organizations involved in the development of sport. SportAccord is a not-for-profit organization which annually brings together representatives from more than 100 International Sports Federations affiliated with several umbrella organizations that host their Annual General Assemblies at SportAccord.