Addressing inequality, enhancing diversity and facilitating greater dialogue in the hosting of sporting mega events.

Project Information

EventRights

Grant agreement ID: 823815

DOI

10.3030/823815

Project closed

EC signature date 15 November 2018

Start date 1 December 2018

End date 30 September 2024

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Total cost

€ 772 800,00

EU contribution

€ 772 800,00

Coordinated by

TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITAET MUENCHEN
Germany

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - EventRights (Addressing inequality, enhancing diversity and facilitating greater dialogue in the hosting of sporting mega events.)

Reporting period: 2022-10-01 to 2024-09-30

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

EventRights will seek to explore, and share knowledge, on the extent to which the landscape of major sport events (MSEs) can be improved to ensure a progressive, rights-focused agenda is pursued by awarding organizations, host governments and implemented in the formal institutions tasked with organizing these events. The project will produce recommendations as to how MSE organizing committees, awarding bodies, and the local/national state can be mandated to ensure that opportunities to address inequality, enhance diversity and facilitate greater dialogue are enshrined in the planning, delivery, and legacy plans for the events themselves.
We extend previous evidence provided in the scientific literature, practice, and public policy in three ways:
•we refer to the different stages that determine social outcomes of MSEs;
•we study the peculiarities of the different stakeholders that are involved in MSE management from an interdisciplinary perspective, providing insights into the different facets of the concept;
•we build up sustainable platforms for learning and knowledge sharing across European countries.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The EventRights consortium has completed all deliverables set out at the beginning of the project in 2018. One of the main goals was to provide opportunities for early-stage and more experienced researchers to learn from each other. Additionally, we aimed to bring academic partners into dialogue with stakeholders from the sport (event) and human rights landscape.

Over the last few years, we have hosted nine online and in-person events and training forums, as well as one International Research Training School at Western University in May 2023. The two-week program brought researchers and experts together to discuss human rights in mega sporting events, with over 35 PhD students and senior academics in attendance. We have held over 75 presentations at international conferences, with about 70% taking place at partner institutions. There have been 38 peer-reviewed publications, with 18 co-authored by partners, and 13 of these articles were co-authored by PhD students and ESRs to aid in learning how to write journal articles.

Additionally, there have been blog posts by ESRs on the EventRights website and two online interviews conducted by a PhD student interviewing ERs, available on YouTube. ERs have participated in discussions on five different podcasts. Dr. Duignan appeared on Sky News in 2022 to debate “Common Ground: Should Wimbledon ban Russian tennis players?” EventRights members appeared in the Guardian to discuss the Tokyo zones project, and Dr. Piekarz from Coventry was interviewed by BBC’s Chris Jones about his research at the Rugby World Cup in Japan. Dr. Koenigstorfer organized a workshop at St. Gallen University, where media representatives and the public, including Swiss Olympic representatives, discussed human rights issues around the Olympic Games.

We produced a case study report providing tools, guidelines, and protocols for enshrining rights in the bidding, planning, and delivery of MSEs for stakeholders, as well as a special issue in Event Management (volume 7, number 6). The special issue contains nine research articles and one commentary.

To sustain research beyond the project, we submitted five research grant applications, three of which were successful. For wider dissemination, the University of West of Scotland commissioned a documentary film, based on content from the consortium, including interviews with academic and non-academic partners and individuals with lived experience from major sporting events.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

With our research, we extend previous evidence provided in the scientific literature, practice, and public policy in three ways: (1) we refer to the different stages that determine social outcomes of mega sporting events—an aspect that had largely been neglected so far; (2) we study the peculiarities of the different stakeholders that are involved into the management of mega sporting events from an interdisciplinary perspective, providing insights into the different facets of the concept; this is needed to prevent myopic perspectives on the progression of human rights in the mega sporting event context; and (3) we build up sustainable platforms for learning and knowledge sharing across European countries and across continents. Such collaboration and discussions are needed because the interpretation of what human rights are and what sport event managers can do to protect them is culturally bound. We consider perspectives from across stakeholders, nations, and continents, making the research truly international and relevant to an international audience.

The EventRights project made a substantial impact in four main areas:
• Advance expertise of a rights-based agenda in connection with mega sporting events, their measurement and viability.
• Establish a strong and enduring global network between academics and other stakeholders with an interest in a rights-based agenda and mega sporting events in order to enhance knowledge transfer and understanding.
• Strengthen the career prospects for researchers and non-academic stakeholders in the field.
• Understand and make visible the role of residents in the bidding, planning, delivering and managing the legacies of mega sporting events.

In terms of the wider social implications, the EventRights project helped give particularly vulnerable population groups a voice in the context of the bidding, planning, delivering and legacy stages of mega sporting events. For example, the collaboration with advocacy groups, such as Transparency International and the Centre for Sport and Human Rights, effectively raised awareness of human rights abuses, how they can be prevented, and how human rights can be promoted for a variety of stakeholders. From a socioeconomic standpoint, we know that human rights-progressive populations are more tolerant regarding the viewpoints of others, more inclusive and transparent—all factors that contribute to sustainable development.

Dr Duignan doing research in Tokyo

Dr Piekartz at the Rugby World Cup

EASM workshop 2024, Paris, France

International Research Training School attendees

International Research Training School, Andrew Manly

Dr Brittain appears on NHK Television