The stereotypes have a hard life. In the corridors of the French sports movement, it has long been said that France's loss of influence on the sporting world would be the consequence, among other reasons, of too little representation in international bodies. The argument had been brandished like a standard after the defeat, narrow but cruel, of the Paris candidacy in the race for the 2012 Games. It was taken up again after the defeat, spectacular to the point of being humiliating, of the dossier of Annecy for the 2018 Winter Olympics.
A careful and relevant study carried out by the IRIS (Institute of International and Strategic Relations) and the CFRS (Higher Council for Strategic Training and Research) demonstrates the opposite. And proves it, with supporting figures. Its title: “Sports diplomacy strategies, new outreach tools for States. » His conclusions: French sport is far from suffering from underrepresentation in European or global institutions. He even carves out a generous share.
Researchers from IRIS and CFRS compared the French, German and British presence in the international federations of summer Olympic sports. A comparison based on the three main positions of these institutions: president, secretary general and vice-president. The result is eloquent. France indeed has a president, Yvan Mainini (basketball), five general secretary positions (Essar Gabriel in athletics, Jérôme Valcke in football, Joël Delplanque in handball, Jean-Luc Rougé in judo, Michel Dusson in wrestling), plus three vice-presidents (Michel Platini in football, Michel Leglise in gymnastics, Joël Bouzou in modern pentathlon. That is a total of nine people. To this list, we must add Bernard Lapasset, president of the IRB, great architect of the arrival of rugby 7 in the Olympic program at the Rio Games in 2016.
Germany, a supposedly very influential nation, has only one representative, Klaus Schormann, president of the International Modern Pentathlon Union. Great Britain, considered essential on the chessboard of the sporting movement, also lists only one, even less well located: John McEwen, vice-president of the International Equestrian Federation. Finally, the same report notes that China, elevated to the rank of great power since the Beijing Games, is represented in the international summer Olympic sports federations by only two leaders: a general secretary for weightlifting and a vice-president. sailing president.
Finally, the IRIS and CFRS study reveals that French sport also has 13 of its members in the executive offices, steering committees and boards of directors of the Olympic federations (in November 2012). Proof that the most false ideas are circulating about the reasons, good or bad, for his supposed loss of influence.
The IRIS and CFRS study: http://csfrs.fr/images/Diplosport/diplosportdossier.pdf
