FIL Prevention of Competition Manipulation in Sport

IOC/FIL Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions

FIL Sports Integrity Manager: Stephen Harris l Email: harris@fil-luge.org
FIL Ethics Authority: Mr. Karl-Friedrich Schauhoff l Email: contact_karl@fil-ethics-authority.org

SPORT PARTNERS: International Olympic Committee (IOC)
Olympic Movement Unit - Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions (OM Unit PMC)

OM Unit PMC Homepage

OM Unit PMC - Email Inquiries: OMUnitPMC@olympic.org

OM Unit PMC - Reporting

Athlete 365 link: Believe in Sport

OM Unit PMC's IF (FIL) SPoC & Fact Finder: FIL Sport Integrity Manager (Email questions to: harris@fil-luge.org)

Overview

The FIL works in partnership with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and their Olympic Movement Unit on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions (OM Unit PMC). The FIL Sport Integrity Manager is the OM Unit PMC’s Single Point of Contact (SPOC) for the FIL. The OM Unit PMC and the FIL work collaboratively to create a positive, safe, and trusted field of play through sound policy, proactive education, prevention, intelligence, and enforcement.  The FIL has integrated the "Code of the Olympic Movement for the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions" into its Ethics Code.

The FIL is fully committed to ensuring the integrity of the sporting competitions. This includes, in particular, the fight against the manipulation of any Luge competition results and the overall clean execution of all sporting competitions according to the principle of "fair play". The FIL supports the IOC’s ‘Believe in Sport’ campaign, which aims to raise awareness among athletes, entourage, and officials of the threat of competition manipulation.

The OM Unit PMC supports International Sports Federations (IFs), National Olympic Committees (NOCs), multi-sports event organisers and other sports organisations in their efforts to protect the integrity of sport. It has also entered into partnerships with other stakeholders and supports various initiatives of intergovernmental organisations.

INTRO VIDEO: The Olympic Movement Unit on the Prevention of Manipulation of Competitions

WHAT IS COMPETITION MANIPULATION?

Competition Manipulation

According to the legal definition, competition manipulation or match-fixing is “an intentional arrangement, act or omission aimed at an improper alteration of the result or the course of a sports competition in order to remove all or part of the unpredictable nature of the sports competition with a view to obtaining an undue benefit for oneself or for others.”(Council of Europe Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions, 2014).

It occurs when a participant in a sports competition (for example an athlete, a coach, a judge or referee, etc.) knowingly underperforms or deliberately makes bad or wrong decisions affecting the result or course of a competition, in order to obtain an undue benefit (usually a sporting or financial benefit).

VIDEO: What is Competition Manipulation?

WHAT IS MATCH FIXING?

MATCH FIXING

Match fixing is when the result of a tournament or competition is partially or completely decided in advance and the match is played to ensure the pre-determined outcome. This is against the rules of the game and often the law. The most common reason for match-fixing is to obtain a payoff from gamblers, but teams may also intentionally perform poorly to gain a future advantage, such as a better draft pick or, on paper, a less eminent opponent in a play-off.

WHAT IS SPORTS BETTING?

SPORTS BETTING

Sports betting has existed since ancient times. If properly regulated it is not a problem. Indeed, a well-regulated and controlled sports betting market further engages sports fans and channels interest and enthusiasm towards the sport.

Several sports betting entities have financially sponsored sport at all levels and provided support to key social causes. However, if not properly regulated, sports betting can pose a       risk of competition manipulation. Prevention of such manipulation is therefore critical. This is the core mission of the Olympic Movement Unit on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions.

VIDEO:  What are the Risks Related to Sports Betting?

Why is Sports Betting a Risk to Fair Competition?

Sports betting carries several risks:

• Betting on one’s own sport, or on any sport during a multi-sport event such as the Olympic Games, can lead to a conflict of interest, as athletes, their entourage members or sports officials could take advantage of their inside knowledge of the competition.
• Athletes who bet on their sport might be tempted to fully or partly manipulate their competition in order to achieve financial gain.
• Athletes may be pressured into not doing their best by entourage members, who might have directly or indirectly bet on the competition and thus be looking for a specific result.
• Of even more concern is that athletes or their entourage could become targets for criminals looking for a way to launder money.

OM UNIT PMC - THE OLYMPIC MOVEMENT UNIT ON THE PREVENTION OF THE MANIPULATION OF COMPETITONS

The OM UNIT PMC seeks to:

• Safeguard the integrity of Olympic competitions
• Support Olympic Movement stakeholders with safeguarding the integrity of their competitions throughout the Olympic cycle
• Ensure compliance of the Olympic Movement stakeholders with the Olympic Movement Code on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions
• In general, support the Olympic Movement stakeholders with the development of activities against competition manipulation

OM UNIT PMC - 3 PILLAR STRATEGY

IOC OM Unit PMC 3 pillar strategy background

IOC’s LEGAL FRAMEWORK and the OM UNIT PMC CODE?

At an international legal level, the Council of Europe Convention on the Manipulation of Sports Competitions (Macolin Convention) is the only specific international convention to address competition manipulation. The Convention is open for signature to all states, both European and non-European.     The provisions of the Macolin Convention cover criminal laws, sports betting regulations, sports regulations, awareness raising, prevention of conflict of interest, information sharing, creation of national cooperation frameworks, etc.

The IOC was involved in drafting the Convention, supports the Council of Europe in its implementation, and is closely cooperating with the network of existing national platforms, known as the “Group of Copenhagen”.

OM UNIT PMC CODE, REGULATIONS and LEGISLATION

Olympic Charter Article 25 calls upon all International Federations to ensure that their statutes, practice and activities are in conformity with the Olympic Charter, including  the adoption and implementation of the Olympic Movement Code on the Prevention  of Manipulation of Competitions. Olympic Charter        

Article 43 states that during the Olympic Games, compliance with  the Olympic Movement Code on the Prevention of Manipulation of Competitions is mandatory for the whole Olympic Movement.

- Olympic Movement CODE on the Prevention of the Manipulation of Competitions

- IOC Code of Ethics

OM UNIT PMC AWARENESS RAISING and CAPACITY BUILDING

The IOC has several educational tools in place to raise athletes’ awareness of the risk of competition manipulation and related corruption. The IOC Code of Ethics is the communication tool for the Rules. It is a basic tool that can be used easily to raise awareness about the topic.

- IOC Code of Ethics

- The IOC's 4 CORE Messages:

1. NEVER bet on your own sport or the Olympic Games
2. NEVER manipulate a competition and always do your best
3. NEVER share inside information. Non-public information about your sport stays private
4. ALWAYS report an approach to manipulate or anything suspicious: FIL Integrity Reporting Line

OM UNIT PMC - AWARENESS AND EDUCATION

IOC's Global Network of PMC Ambassadors

FIL's PMC Ambassador: Andreas Linger (AUT)

OM UNIT PMC - E-LEARNING

The IOC e-learning on the prevention of the  manipulation of competitions  is based on the 4 core messages of the IOC code of conduct. This interactive e-learning that lasts 10 minutes includes real case, scenarios,  and is available in 11 languages.

E-Learning can be carried out in different ways: 

1. During events, training camps, etc.;
2. The hyperlink can be published on websites and printed on brochures;
3. Use the monitoring option in order to do an extensive education action or make  it compulsory prior to a competition. 

Organisations are free to translate the content of this course to additional  languages. The IOC will coordinate and make available the new language on  the IOC e-learning platform.

E-Learning PMC Resources:

1. PMC Education – YOG Gangwon 2024
2. What is Competition Manipulation: Cheating in Sport
3. What are the Risks Related to Sports Betting?
4. OM Unit PMC Youth Workshop Kit
5. Athlete365 PMC E-Learning course

OM UNIT PMC - Monitoring > Intelligence > Investigations

IBIS - IOC Integrity Betting Intelligence System

The “Integrity Betting Intelligence System” (IBIS) was created in 2013 as a permanent system for the Olympic Games and the main competitions of international sports federations. IBIS assesses the risks of competition manipulation connected to sports betting and aggregates, analyses and disseminates information connected  to this challenge.

IBIS uniquely links the sports world with the sports betting sector, having set up links to more than 40 International Sport Federations (IFs) and more than 50 sports betting entities all around the globe (public and private betting operators, regulating authorities and National Platforms).

It is recommended that the stakeholders of the Olympic Movement define a “Single Point of Contact” (SPoC) for IBIS. This individual is responsible for receiving and disseminating any alerts received in relation to competition manipulation. The stakeholders may also appoint a “Fact-Finder”, this individual may or may  not be the same as the SPOC. The Fact-Finder is tasked to investigate any alerts received and to present the findings to a disciplinary committee

EXTERNAL PARTNERS and IBIS: