Off the wire
• Urgent: Munich police evacuate shopping center, train station after "bomb threat"  • UN chief urges more efforts to address crises of poverty, violence by promoting int'l friendship  • AU, Somali forces capture key area in southwest Somalia  • 1st LD Writethru: Belgium indicts one suspect over terror charge  • Spotlight: DPRK condemns THAAD deployment on Korean Peninsula  • Carter to meet Perry in 2016 Yushan Snooker World Open final  • Iraqi forces launch offensive to clear IS militants from rural areas near Fallujah  • Across China: New book shows Chinese youth another side of Marx  • Xinhua world news summary at 1530 GMT, July 30  • Nepal's central bank says yield of Chinese currency based investments higher  
You are here: 　 Home

New measures in place as IOC fights for clean sport at Rio 2016

Xinhua, July 31, 2016 Adjust font size:

A number of new measures have been put in place for the Rio Olympic Games, both in the Olympic Village and behind-the-scenes, as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is determined to protect the integrity of sport.

These measures include a fully operational Joint Integrity Intelligence Unit (JIIU) in collaboration with experts from the Rio 2016 Organizing Committee, as well as a reinforced Integrity Betting Intelligence System (IBIS).

The JIIU will be responsible for the prevention, monitoring and assessment of any unethical activity related to the Olympic Games, and will be supported by the Department of Federal Police (DPF) and the Secretariat of Security for Major Events (SESGE) as well as INTERPOL when needed, such as in the event of a criminal act.

"During the last months, we have been working closely with international police forces, the Brazilian police and the Rio 2016 organizers to set up the necessary processes and coordinate actions for Games time. As a sports organisation, the IOC can deal with disciplinary matters related to the Olympic Games; however, we will then rely on the Brazilian authorities and their jurisdiction for criminal and security matters," said Paquerette Girard Zappelli, IOC Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer.

The JIIU is building on the experience gathered during London 2012, when the IOC operated a Joint Assessment Unit with the UK Gambling Commission - a system that proved successful. The IOC's Integrity Betting Intelligence System, a mechanism for the exchange of information and intelligence related to sports betting, will be a tool for the JIIU to prevent Olympic events from competition manipulation. Betting operators and regulators that have signed agreements with the IOC will be responsible for monitoring betting activity during the Games and alerting the IOC directly when suspicious activity is detected. The system was reinforced recently with an enhanced monitoring and information exchange between law enforcement agencies, sports organizations and betting operators/regulators. All the Olympic Summer International Federations have signed up to IBIS.

Furthermore, the JIIU will be able to rely on the INTERPOL Major Event Support Team (IMEST), which is deployed to assist member countries in the preparation, coordination and implementation of security arrangements for major events. The IOC signed a Memorandum of Understanding with INTERPOL in January 2014. Since then, the two organizations have widened the scope of joint activities, including close collaboration during the Olympic Games.

Olympic Agenda 2020, the strategic roadmap for the future of the Olympic Movement, has reiterated the IOC's commitment and drive to protect clean athletes and the integrity of sport. A number of measures have thus been initiated and implemented, including robust educational awareness programs to protect Olympic events from any kind of manipulation.

The integrity eLearning platform, which is operational for the first time in Rio, challenges athletes and officials' awareness of the fight against the manipulation of competitions. More importantly, it teaches them the role they can play in protecting themselves and in preserving the integrity of their sport and competitions. Featuring real-life scenarios, this eLearning is available to athletes in the Olympic Village's IOC Space, on their Samsung mobile phone as well as online at: www.olympic.org/integrityelearning in 10 languages. Endit