The Monograph “Ethics, Law and Sanctions in International Sports”, Prepared by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the International Athlete Rights Association Anatoly Peskov, Will Be Published in the Near Future.

The Monograph “Ethics, Law and Sanctions in International Sports”, Prepared by the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the International Athlete Rights Association Anatoly Peskov, Will Be Published in the Near Future.

The monograph is written in an original and interesting way. The author tried to explore the causes of deviant behavior in sports from the point of view of morality, law and philosophy, as well as to understand the legal nature of professional sports, critically evaluate the norms of current international sports law and the activities of international sports and anti-doping organizations in the context of geopolitical changes taking place in the world.

The author asks a question. Is sport always on the side of Kind and morally pure? And he answers this question himself. In his opinion, sport is contradictory and there are Kind and Evil. There is a philosophical explanation for this. The presence of Kind and Evil is predetermined by the nature of the development of society and man. In each of us and in any social community, Kind and Evil struggle. As a result of this struggle, the moral essence of man and society is born. The commercialization of sports, in his opinion, has changed the moral consciousness of many athletes and the moral state of professional sports, not for the better. Collectivism and honesty have been replaced by the psychology of individualism and profit. Individual athletes, who, due to their unique abilities, are capable of becoming millionaires, owners of yachts, expensive cars, etc., have become an example for Russian society. Altruism in sports, purity of thoughts, kind attitude towards other athletes, the ability to empathize, and the desire to help a less successful and advanced athlete have become not the main thing. The ideology of high morality and patriotism was replaced by the ideology of the cult of money. This led to a deformation of the consciousness of many athletes. Some athletes sincerely began to believe that in sports they should rely mainly on results that bring money and fame, and not on morality, which can be neglected in the presence of a material goal. For the sake of prize money, some of them are ready to use prohibited substances and methods, cause deliberate damage to their opponents, participate in match-fixing and other illegal actions. The main value for such athletes is their personal and material well-being, obtained at any cost. For the sake of their vain and selfish aspirations, these athletes are even ready to refuse to be citizens of their country, to march forever under neutral flags and in neutral costumes, to listen to neutral anthems and to change their citizenship.

The author also tries to understand the concept of deviant behavior and understand whether such behavior is always so bad. Even the classics of criminology noted that someone can be a genius, hero, prophet or saint, and someone can be an alcoholic, drug addict, fraudster, pedophile and murderer. And all these opposite people committed actions included in the general concept of “deviant behavior.” It is comfortable and safe for everyone to live without deviant behavior according to average standards. However, according to the author, living exclusively according to average standards without deviations leads to stagnation and decay of society. Deviation from norms is natural and necessary for the development of man and society. This also applies to professional sports. A sport where passions do not run high, Olympic and world records are not set, where new forms and methods of sports training do not appear, where there are no sports feats, new breakthrough technologies for sports training, will inevitably rot and sink into the philistine average environment of existence.

Some philosophers claim that everything in the world is fatal and deviant behavior is predetermined by fate. Someone will inevitably become an Olympic champion, set a world record, and will bask in the glory, while someone will become a doper and drug addict, the scum of society, and lose their family and home. It is pointless, fatalists say, to resist one’s fate. A question arises in this regard. Do athletes have the freedom to choose their behavior if everything in our lives is already predetermined? The author's answer is firm. A person always has the freedom to choose behavior. In the same life situation, he is free in his choice: he can commit a feat, and he can commit a crime. The world and our destinies will begin to change only when, as Mahatma Gandhi said, we ourselves begin to change. According to the author, no actions of politicians, laws, decrees, training programs, severe punishments, fines, huge government and sponsorship money and bonuses will change the state of affairs in professional sports for the better, unless positive spiritual changes occur in the souls of the athletes themselves and the moral climate of sports communities.

   Considerable attention in the monograph is paid to a critical analysis of the provisions of international sports law and the activities of international sports and anti-doping organizations from the point of view of respect for human rights and freedoms. In particular, the author states that the presumption of innocence of athletes does not apply when violating anti-doping rules. Under the WADA Code, athletes are responsible for any prohibited substance found in their body, even if the prohibited substance entered their body against their will, through the malicious act of a third party, or by accident. An athlete will be punished in any case if, for example even if someone secretly put a prohibited substance in its glass of water or forcibly poured it into its mouth. Any athlete will be responsible for any drug used containing a prohibited substance, even if it is officially recommended by his coach or sports doctor. The fact that the specifications for the medicine or biological supplement that an athlete used will not contain information about the presence of a prohibited substance will not save the athlete from liability. Any athlete, in accordance with the World Anti-Doping Code, can be punished, deprived of all awards, and most importantly, disgraced in the eyes of close people and family, humiliated and insulted for acts for which he or she is not guilty. Moreover, athletes and even entire sports federations and national sports organizations may be subject to collective punishment for acts committed by others. As the author notes, this practice of punishing athletes reminds him of Stalin’s times, when a person’s guilt did not matter, and any person could be punished without guilt on the denunciation of an envious neighbor or colleague or for family relations with “enemies of the people.” The very fact of denunciation and family relationships was important. This principle of “strict ability,” in the author’s opinion is unacceptable in professional sports and today contradicts the Constitution of the Russian Federation and it is prohibited by the criminal legislation of our country.

The monograph notes that as a result of collective political sanctions, the rights of almost all Russian athletes were violated. For many years, the IOC and WADA, contrary to the Olympic Charter, have prohibited them for various reasons from participating in international competitions under their national flag, wearing sportswear with national symbols and receiving awards to the sounds of their national anthem. Russian athletes were deprived of their universal and natural right to belong to the country where their parents and families live, where their relatives are buried, where great victories were achieved, where they were simply loved and raised. Not only Russian athletes were punished and humiliated, the country's leadership, government officials, and even the population of Russia, who were forbidden to attend international competitions with national flags, was punished. According to the author, the IOC violated political neutrality and exceeded its powers under the Olympic Charter, punishing Russia and its citizens for political reasons for conducting a special military operation in Ukraine. The author is confident that the fundamental principles of the Olympic Charter have been violated and Russia must more actively oppose these illegal actions. The author believes that the time of neutral athletes has passed, and Russian athletes should attend international sports competitions only with their own flag and anthem, with a sense of national dignity and pride in Russian sports. He believes that respect for the national symbols of our country is much more important than gold medals won by neutral athletes who voluntarily refused to recognize themselves as citizens of Russia, which raised them and financed their sports activities. It is also unacceptable, in the author’s opinion, for the IOC to persecute athletes for their political beliefs. The IOC, in fact, prohibited Russian athletes from having any of their own political beliefs and views related to their attitude to the special military operation in Ukraine. Meanwhile, athletes may have different points of view on this operation. Some may be for it, some may be against it. But no one has the right to impose exclusively their point of view on them. This is a violation of Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, according to which everyone has the right to freedom of expression of their opinions and Article 29 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, according to which no one can be forced to express or renounce their opinions and beliefs. This violates their human rights. Unfortunately, in this regard, the Court of Arbitration for Sports in Lausanne (Switzerland) is also unable to be objective and protect the rights of Russian athletes, since this Court was created and funded by the IOC and organizations controlled by the IOC.

The monograph examines the issue of the legitimacy of the International Olympic Committee. According to the author, the IOC does not have the authority to represent the interests of athletes from all countries of the world, because this sports organization is not elected, as many people think, by national sports organizations or their representatives. The decision on the election of IOC members in accordance with Explanation 2.4.1 to Rule 16 of the Olympic Charter can only be taken by a session upon the proposal of the IOC Executive Board. In fact, a small group called the Executive Committee and the President of the IOC decide who should be in this organization and who should not be. The IOC members elected in this way will always put the decisions of the President and the Executive Committee of this organization and their personal interests above the interests of national sports organizations and the athletes themselves. Moreover, most of them are so-called “independent persons”, members of royal families and the richest clans who have nothing to do with sports. As a result, we have an elite international sports club of aristocrats, independent of the opinions of national sports organizations and ordinary athletes and making single-handedly the most important decisions in international sports for their own selfish and political reasons. It is not surprising that corruption, bribery and all kinds of financial abuses flourish in this non-democratically elected organization. According to the author, all this looks today like a historical anachronism. The IOC, which at one time played an important positive role in the unification of humanity and the development of international sports, according to the author, today, in the context of geopolitical changes in the world, has violated political neutrality and is no longer able to unite athletes and implement the principles of Olympism. It's sad, but it's reality.

How should Russian sport behave in this new geopolitical reality? Always compete under a neutral flag and pay contributions to international organizations that violate the rights of Russian athletes and humiliate their national dignity? According to the author, Russia must radically change its policy in international sports. The author is convinced that the time for inclusive international sports is coming, which involves the creation of new international sports management centers, alternative international sports and anti-doping organizations, and new sports courts. Legal mechanisms must be created to protect the autonomy of sport from politicians, in addition to preventing the punishment of innocent athletes. The author believes that Russia must more decisively and actively defend its national interests and symbols in international sports, and participate in the construction of a new multipolar model of inclusive international sports with the participation of friendly and interested countries. In particular, the author recommends creating in Russia the institution of an ombudsman to protect the rights of athletes, as well as a specialized bar to ensure legal protection of Russian athletes in foreign countries and providing budgetary funds for these purposes.

The author recalls the traditions that took place in the ancient Olympic Games in Greece, when no one asked whether the athletes loved their kings and their wars or not. Ancient warriors simply took off their weapons and began a peaceful sporting competition, and this contributed to the end of fratricidal wars. He sincerely wants to return modern international sport to the mainstream of friendship among the peoples of the world and respectful attitude towards all participants in the sporting competition. The author is convinced that the unification of athletes and the revival of the spirit of Olympism will happen sooner or later, humanity will unite and world wars will end. The author is probably naive, but naive and good desires sometimes change our world for the better.

The monograph is intended for use in the system of higher and additional legal and sports education, as well as for a wide range of readers interested in the problems of professional and international sports. The monograph mentions the names of the honorary chairmen of the IARA Board of Directors, Professors D. Nafziger and D. Panagiotopoulos, as well as the respected directors of our organization - D. Rogachev and V. Saraev. We hope that our leader, colleague and friend Anatoly Peskov will please us with other bold and debate-generating scientific works in the field of protecting the rights of athletes.

К списку новостей