The Committee on Culture and Sports (CULT) holds a public hearing on the future EU sports policy, in the European Parliament in Brussels. Experts from the world of sport, the Commission and the Belgian presidency of the Council discuss the EU's priorities for this newly acquired competence.

Brussels

hearing

sport and health (T)

A future European sports policy: extracts from the public hearing

SOUNDBITE (English), Gregory PAULGER, Director, European Commission DB EAC, The core idea of the communication is to develop European dimension in sport with concrete actions who are taking account of course of sports specific nature. In its implementation the communication will require strength and cooperation. In particular with the Member States, European Parliament and of course the sports movement. The communication will build on the 2007 White paper on sport, Pierre de Coubertin action plan. The specific actions that we will put forward will largely reflect the ideas expressed by stakeholder and will fully respect the treaty.

SOUNDBITE (English), Patric HICKEY, President, European Olympic Committee EOC, The specific nature of sport promoted in the TFEU should be regarded as the cornerstone of a New EU policy in the field of sport. EU sports policy was guided in the past mainly of the jury of prudence of the European court of justice. The new legal framework provided by the provisions of sport in the TFEU should allow the EU institutions to go beyond the strict application of EU law principles by their specific implementation to the field of sport. And to define precisely the implementation of a new EU competence.

SOUNDBITE (French), William GAILLARD, Senior advisor, UEFA, All sports, this professional elite is less than one percent of all the people who practice the sport. But thanks to the financial solidarity which is the touchstone of the European sports model this tiny but wealthy elite thanks to the crucial aid of volunteers keeps the rest of the sports movement going. This is a vertical solidarity nationally; the professional sports feed through the national association into mass sport. And it is also horizontal at European level. In football for example where UEFA, the European confederation if you like gives money to 53 national federations. The richer supplies the poorer.

SOUNDBITE (English), Mogens KIRKEBY, President, International Sport and Culture Association ISCA, We have here 5 small teddy bears and they are representing each one hundred million Europeans. Today we have 40 percent who are active and we have 60 percent who are not so active. And this guy he knows it is too dangerous, he knows that that physica inactivity is the fourth leading discourse so I think our common goal is to exchange one of these inactive with another active and that will give altogether one hundred million more active in sport and physical activities.

SOUNDBITE (English), Michele COLUCCI, Professor of International and European Sports Law, Tilburg University, The attention the European institutions now should be switched from, or should be focused on amateurs and not only on professionals.

SOUNDBITE (English), Michele COLUCCI, Professor of International and European Sports Law, Tilburg University, What is an amateur in Italy does not necessarily is an amateur in Belgium or in Germany or in Denmark. A solution given by the football federation in Italy for doping maybe is not as efficient by the one given by the Swedish federation. We gather information, we spot the efficiencies and at the same time we try to disseminate the best practices.

SOUNDBITE (English), Michele COLUCCI, Professor of International and European Sports Law, Tilburg University, What has been one of the most beautiful successful programme of the Eastern and European Union, the Erasmus program. More 2 million citizen and students move from the one country to the another one and study for there. Why should not we think about the same thing for whoom? For athletes, for the ones that play for fun, they can go there play and train their selves in another country.