Ceylon Today Editorial

Interest, knowledge of sports can stop rOt

11 March 2017

Around the world there is a standard for undertaking responsibility. It is especially so, when running a sports organization that is a money making venture. If you take an organization such as the International Olympic Committee, it is one of the richest sports controlling bodies in the world. These bodies are so rich that they are always under investigations because of corruption. It's not that it does not happen, but the main thing is how the movement involves itself with sports to have the biggest programme of sports going every four years.

The financial positions of these organizations are so immense that presidents carry an extra burden being in those positions. In the Olympics they are appointed on an honorary basis. As a writer explains, the Olympic movement is one run as a family with the president being the paternal figure. It is an organization needing a lot of trust and responsibility to be run in the manner explained in the Olympic Charter 'Olympism is a philosophy of life, exalting and combining in a balanced whole, the qualities of body, will and mind. Blending sport with culture and education, Olympism seeks to create a way of life based on the joy found in effort, the educational value of good example and respect for universal fundamental ethical principles'.

With all this, yet, there are presidents who were under the light for various acts such as making it from one of contested by amateur athletes to being one of contested by professionals and for generous hand outs to Olympic Committee members from cities aspiring to host Olympic Games. However, it has today established and gone to make the Olympics more competitive among professionals.

In Sri Lanka the organizations which run sports have a completely different approach, be it cricket, football, athletics or netball and the sports minister had to remind the Schools Rugby Association recently to act more responsibly or face consequences of not being recognized by the World Rugby and Sri Lanka Rugby Football Association, for tournaments undertaken by them. The chances are that cricket also recently got into a somewhat questionable situation in showing an unaudited financial statement unsuitable for such an organization. It is accepted by financial experts that unaudited financial statements are dangerous.

The need for being educated in all matters related to sports and the running of it is seen as one of major problems pertaining to hinder the progress of sports in Sri Lanka. If you take the Sports Ministry it is full of people who do not serve sports as it should be carried out. Delay eats up the qualities of sports as time is one of the main ingredients that maintain what goes into sports development. As seen in the recent delays of having the Sugathadasa Stadium track relaid. When it begins with the very organization that all sports federations and associations depend upon to serve them and deal with problems related to sports under them, development goes out of the window into thin air.

The reason why these Sri Lankan sports organizations act as if they can get away, by fooling people as do politicians, and what and who it serves is because that is how they are run. These sports federations and associations and also the clubs serving their sport are today taken over by non-sports people. It definitely is not going to serve the sport. But, as birds of a feather these people have a way of blending together to get their agendas served, and those interested in sports have to watch their act and hope that sports will survive.

With such situations arising, it is a pity that sports have to suffer. Take for instance the sports bodies in the mercantile sector, they organize their tournaments and play them in a manner fitting their programme. It is mostly club players, and also some who have represented the country, who help the development of the game to a great degree. All this takes place because of the way it is undertaken to be run, and those involved take a lot of pride in what they do and that includes the sponsors who are so willing to spend money and time on the game. We can never expect this from the government quarters that are not as efficient or interested in sports the way mercantile people are.