The Law of the Olympic Games


Book Description

I am deeply honoured and very pleased indeed to have been invited to write the Foreword to this book, especially as the great success of and excitement generated by the Beijing Olympics last Summer is still fresh in all our minds! This is the first work on this important subject – the Olympic Games having been well described as ‘the greatest sporting show on earth’ – and the author, Alexandre Miguel Mestre, a distinguished Portuguese international sports lawyer, is to be warmly congratulated on producing it. The book covers the historical development of ‘Olympic Law’ and the current legal status of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as an NGO (non-g- ernmental organisation) under Public International Law, and its various constituent members and organs. The UN resolutions on the Olympic Truce of which the latest one is published in the book, are of a recommendatory nature (‘soft law’), but well illustrate the wide range of international legal instruments, which constitute the corpus of so-called ‘Olympic Law’, including the inter-State Nairobi Treaty on the Protection of the Olympic Symbol – the famous five interconnected rings. The book also addresses some contemporary legal issues affecting the Olympic Movement, including eligibility criteria, dual participation in the Olympics and the Paralympics as well as environmental concerns and the protection of the so-called ‘Olympic Properties’ – in other words the valuable intellectual property rights of the IOC including TV rights – without which the Olympic Games could not be financed and staged.




The International Olympic Committee, Law, and Accountability


Book Description

The Olympic Games is unquestionably the largest and most important sporting event in the world. Yet who exactly is accountable for its successes and failures? This book examines the legitimacy and accountability of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). This non-governmental organisation wields extraordinary power, but there is no democratic basis for its authority. This study questions the supremacy of the IOC, arguing that there is a significant accountability deficit. Investigating the conduct of the IOC from an international legal perspective, the book moves beyond a critique of the IOC to explore potential avenues for reform, means of improving democratic procedures and increasing accountability. If the Olympics are to continue to be our most celebrated sporting event, those who organise them must be answerable to the citizens that they can potentially harm as well as benefit. Full of original insights into the inner workings of the IOC, this book is essential reading for all those interested in the Olympics, sport policy, sport management, sport mega-events, and the law.




International Sports Law


Book Description

Previous edition, 1st, published in 1988.




Owning the Olympics


Book Description

"A major contribution to the study of global events in times of global media. Owning the Olympics tests the possibilities and limits of the concept of 'media events' by analyzing the mega-event of the information age: the Beijing Olympics. . . . A good read from cover to cover." —Guobin Yang, Associate Professor, Asian/Middle Eastern Cultures & Sociology, Barnard College, Columbia University From the moment they were announced, the Beijing Games were a major media event and the focus of intense scrutiny and speculation. In contrast to earlier such events, however, the Beijing Games are also unfolding in a newly volatile global media environment that is no longer monopolized by broadcast media. The dramatic expansion of media outlets and the growth of mobile communications technology have changed the nature of media events, making it significantly more difficult to regulate them or control their meaning. This volatility is reflected in the multiple, well-publicized controversies characterizing the run-up to Beijing 2008. According to many Western commentators, the People's Republic of China seized the Olympics as an opportunity to reinvent itself as the "New China"---a global leader in economics, technology, and environmental issues, with an improving human-rights record. But China's maneuverings have also been hotly contested by diverse global voices, including prominent human-rights advocates, all seeking to displace the official story of the Games. Bringing together a distinguished group of scholars from Chinese studies, human rights, media studies, law, and other fields, Owning the Olympics reveals how multiple entities---including the Chinese Communist Party itself---seek to influence and control the narratives through which the Beijing Games will be understood. digitalculturebooks is an imprint of the University of Michigan Press and the Scholarly Publishing Office of the University of Michigan Library dedicated to publishing innovative and accessible work exploring new media and their impact on society, culture, and scholarly communication. Visit the website at www.digitalculture.org.




Changing Actors in International Law


Book Description

"The 15 essays in this book began as papers presented at the Seventh Four Societies Conference hosted at Waseda University, Tokyo, in June 2018, by the Japanese Society of International Law (JSIL). The 'Four Societies' conferences are a collaborative initiative of the American Society of International Law (asil), the Australian New Zealand Society of International Law (ANZSIL), the Canadian Council on International Law (CCIL) and JSIL. The biannual conferences, which began in 2006, provide an opportunity for emerging scholars to foster a collaborative network around a common theme"--




Handbook on International Sports Law


Book Description

Despite taking a wide variety of forms, sport is universal. Circumstances and events generating legal issues in sport are similarly universal, but sport operates under many legal systems worldwide. Fragmentation and inconsistency in legal outcomes often result. This innovative collection of essays by leading scholars of sports law addresses a gap in the literature. It advances understanding of how different legal systems respond to common issues and offers insights into the developing international system of sports law. Researchers will find this book of inescapable assistance and interest. Hayden Opie, Melbourne Law School, Australia Nafziger and Ross have provided an enormously useful collection of incisive and integrating essays that cover the gamut of important issues in the emerging field of international sport law. Andrew Zimbalist, Smith College, US This Handbook presents a comprehensive collection of essays by leading scholars and practitioners in the burgeoning field of international sports law. The authors address significant legal issues on two gradually converging tracks: the mainstream institutional framework of the law, primarily the International Olympic Committee, international sports federations, regional and national sports authority, and the Court of Arbitration for Sport; and the commercial sports industry. Topics include the institutional structure; fundamental issues, legal principles and decisions within those institutions; mediation, arbitration and litigation of disputes; doping, gambling and the expanding use of technology in competition; athlete eligibility requirements; discrimination; and protection of athletes. The book also covers a broad range of commercial issues related to competition law and labor markets; media, image, and intellectual property rights; event sponsorships; and players' agents. Comparative analyses of young sports models and practices in North America, Europe and elsewhere supplement the general theme of international sports law. This major collection of essays on some of the most controversial, cutting-edge issues in international sports law, will be a captivating read for academics and students of sports law, sports management, international law and comparative law, as well as practicing lawyers and players agents. Senior executives and other professionals in the sports industry will also find much to interest them in this well-documented Handbook.




Language Policy and Planning for the Modern Olympic Games


Book Description

This book is the first longitudinal study that addresses language policy and planning in the context of a major international sporting event and examines the ideological, political, social, cultural, and economic effects of such context-specific policy initiatives on contemporary China. The book has important reference value for future research on language management at the supernational level and language services for linguistically complex events. At the same time, it presents some broader implications for current and future language policy makers, language educators and learners, particularly from non-English speaking backgrounds. Foreword by Ingrid Piller




Autonomy of Sport in Europe


Book Description

Given the impact that successive court rulings have had on the organisation of the sports movement in the past 15 years, the autonomy of non-governmental sports organisations has become a highly topical concern in Europe. It is also closely related to the issue of governance, the subject of previous Council of Europe studies. The Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) decided to explore the concept of autonomy in greater depth by studying the conceptual, political, legal, economic and psycho-sociological aspects of the subject. This study was carried out at the request of the EPAS by the Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration (IDHEAP) on the basis of a questionnaire sent to public authorities in charge of sport and to national and international umbrella sports organisations. In addition to an analysis of the data obtained, documents produced by public authorities and sports organisations on this emerging issue are presented. This study contributes to a better understanding of the concept of autonomy and offers a clear picture of the issues involved.




Law, Ethics, and Integrity in the Sports Industry


Book Description

"This book addresses matters related to sports from a variety of perspectives. It demonstrates possible institutional gaps and propose changes that could enhance integrity in sports. It also explores the legitimacy and integrity of the institutions of sports by focusing on social, economic and political influence of sports"--




Inside the Olympics


Book Description

A candid look at how the Olympic rings got so tarnished-from a top IOC insider Bribery, illicit drugs, tainted judges, dirty politics . . . the Olympics have come a long way from ancient Greece. Far from the vaunted symbol of athletic excellence, the Olympic games have become awash in scandal (from doping and judging scandals, questionable selection practices for future sites) that have given it a tawdry luster only cynics and news junkies would relish. Now, Dick Pound, a former Olympic medalist and twenty-five year member of the IOC gives an insider's account of the politics within the IOC as well as an unsensationalistic look at what went on behind the headlines. As controversial as the games themselves have become, Inside the Olympics is a fascinating, no-holds-barred look at just how the Olympics and their legacy have foundered.