Olympians demand a solution to the problem of financing
A meeting of the Commission of Olympians of the NOC BIH was held in the Olympic Committee of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was led by the President of the Commission, Amel Tuka.
The meeting was held in a hybrid format, where the Olympians who are currently abroad in the training process had the opportunity to attend online through the Zoom application.
The Olympians are unique in their demands, which they presented through the following conclusions:
- The Olympians unanimously supported 9 conclusions of the NOC BIH Round Table on the systemic financing of Bosnia and Herzegovina sports.
- The Olympians agreed that the voice of athletes should be heard more through the work of commissions at the state level and that it is necessary to appeal to decision-makers and competent ministries to include athletes in the work of their bodies and bodies so that the voice of athletes is heard.
- The Olympians agreed that the basic body that should delegate the problems of athletes to the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina - the Sports Council - is not functioning and that they have not met for years.
- The Olympians expect greater involvement of former athletes who currently hold political positions in organs and bodies, and can make a change in this segment.
The Olympians also discussed the recently adopted Decision of the BIH Parliamentary Assembly, which rejected support for athletes by allocating adequate and dedicated funds to the NOC BIH in order to finance the preparations of the athletes in the pre-Olympic year. Furthermore, the Commission's conclusions are:
- To hold a media conference and show the displeasure of the athletes.
- That the Olympians organize a meeting with former athletes who currently hold political positions in organs and bodies that can make a change in this segment.
- That it is necessary for the athletes to visit the High Representative and the Special Representative of the EU for Bosnia and Herzegovina, and ask them to support the demands of the Olympic athletes within their competences.
- That a protest in front of the institutions of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the High Representative is one of the options in order to point out the decade-long neglect of top sports and sports in Bosnia and Herzegovina in general.
On the agenda, in addition to current problems related to the status and financing of athletes, the Olympians discussed the organization of the Athletes' Forum organized by the NOC BIH and the activities of the International Olympic Committee through the Athlete 365 platform.
Note: 9 conclusions of the NOC BIH Round Table on the systemic financing of sports with a comparative analysis with neighboring countries can be found at THIS LINK.