Sustainability in Sports
It’s the XXIV Olympic Winter Games and, whether you’re a winter sports fan or not, it’s hard to deny the excitement of watching skiers hurl themselves down near-vertical icy slopes at 80 miles per hour, or admiring the grace and skill of world class ice dancers, or holding your breath during the skeleton luge. The Olympics are an event that truly brings the world together, breaking down distance, language and social class as we cheer for athletes at the very top of their game. But this year’s Games may be the most controversial in recent memory, with China’s human rights record in the spotlight, the curious-at-best decision to host a Winter Games at a venue with no natural snow, and the opaque governance practices of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in question.
The Games have rarely been without controversy, from the inflammatory (Nazi Germany’s exhortation of aryan race theory at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, or Russian and US boycotts during the Cold War) to the inane (the first ever marathon winner being disqualified after he was discovered to have ridden in a car during the race). However, the IOC continues to insist that the Games are “just sport” and that they have no role in encouraging or even discussing social and sustainability issues.
So, is this a fair position? Are the Olympics “just sport”, and should the athletes and commentators who suggest otherwise just “stay in their lane?” As global sporting bodies tackle major issues from abuse scandals to climate change, it seems harder and harder for the Olympics to deny it has a role to play as a leader in Environmental, Social and Governance sustainability. Here are just some of the ways that sports are changing, and showing ESG leadership, across the world.
Environmental Sustainability
From surfing to skiing, rugby to cricket, sports are taking on the challenge of climate change. This is no feel-good side hustle. Many sports are at the frontlines of climate risk, putting athlete safety, jobs and local economies on the line. A recent study showed a marked decline in the ability of former Winter Games host cities to provide fair and safe conditions for competition, conditions which could result in only one former host city remaining a viable location for Winter Games by 2080, if Paris climate targets are not met. In 2020, wildfire smoke forced tennis players to withdraw from the Australian Open. And the World Surf League has recognized that its “playing field” is under threat from sea level rise, increased storm intensity and plastic pollution.
These issues are being addressed by a rapidly growing number of athlete-led and nonprofit groups around the world, who are using the substantial brand capital of their sports to lead the push for local and international climate solutions.
Social Sustainability
One of the most talked-about issues during the current Olympic Games is China’s human rights record. After tennis player Peng Shuai disappeared following allegations that she was sexually assaulted by former Chinese Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli, many questioned the IOC’s lacklustre response. Similarly, with shocking allegations of China’s treatment of the Muslim minority Uighur population, sceptics are wondering what prompted the IOC to award Beijing the Winter Games (especially in light of the complete lack of natural snow at competition venues).
But athletes and others are demanding better. Simone Biles stepped away from competition in Tokyo, publicly placing the value of her mental health over a gold medal. Fans at the Australian Open breached Tennis Australia protocols by wearing Where is Peng Shuai t-shirts in the arena. And of course, Colin Kaepernick triggered an unprecedented wave of change in US sports by taking a knee during the national anthem. A 2020 ESPN survey indicated that over 70% of fans in the US support athletes speaking out on social issues. And it makes sense. What we inherently love about sport is its humanity. If sport doesn’t care for humans, what value does it have?
Governance Sustainability
From the arrest of honorary member Carlos Nuzman for vote-buying, to controversial lifetime membership terms, to being allocated dedicated lanes on busy London highways, there have long been mutterings about nepotism, corruption and secretive processes within the IOC. Nor is criticism limited to the Olympic governing body. FIFA members were famously imprisoned for racketeering in the US, and the global cycling body, UCI has been accused of everything from doping cover-ups to supporting dictators.
The result of these poor governance practices is a global loss of faith in the integrity of major sporting competitions. Spectators might still love the sports and admire the athletes, but there is a tarnishing when the bodies that purport to uphold principles of fairness and playing by the rules do not appear to do so themselves.
Sports are a reflection of our values and priorities as a society. We love seeing the triumph of the underdog, the selflessness of helping an injured competitor. We empathise with the grief of loss. Athletes are humans, sport is humanity, and from the origin of competitions, where sport was used as a training ground for war, ‘staying in your lane’ has never been the reality.
No sport is an island. We are all connected, and that imparts a responsibility to co-create a world where the rules are clear and are fairly applied, where we do not take more than we give, where we meet our own needs while ensuring future generations can meet theirs, where we part of, not apart from. In other words, a sustainable world.
