More Participation in the Planning of the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2021

Athleten Deutschland e.V. welcomes the latest progress and successes achieved in the planning of the

postponed Olympic Games. We recognize the complexity of the planning process in the midst of the pandemic,

but we expect the IOC and the IOC Athletes' Commission to provide more consistent and better

communication on the current status of planning. The IOC must provide more information

about potential scenarios and, above all, ensure more participation and involvement of the athletes in further

decisions. Athletes want to be part of the solution and not just obtain information from occasional telephone

conferences and press reports.

For this reason, we repeat our requests, which were already presented in the telephone conference of the IOC

Athletes' Commission at the end of March in cooperation with the DOSB Athletes' Commission and athletes'

representatives from other countries: The Olympic Games must not endanger public health and must

guarantee the health and safety of athletes. Adequate training conditions and qualification procedures must

be put in place for everyone in the run-up to the Games. The anti-doping system must be intact.

We expect the IOC Athletes' Commission and the IOC leadership to respect and fully implement the following

principles:

1. Inclusiveness

In the further process, genuine participation for athletes and their representatives must be ensured. Decisions

that directly or indirectly affect them must be based on their feedback. Independent

athlete groups representing Olympic athletes must also be equally involved.

2. Transparency

All feedback must be visible and can be made public. If feedback is rejected or not taken into

account, justification must be provided.

3. Accountability

The IOC Executive Committee and the taskforce must commit themselves to implementing the

athletes’ feedback and these principles. They must then report transparently on how this input is reflected

in the decision-making and scenario planning.

Maximilian Klein, Representative for International Sports Policy: "It is through honoring these principles that the

athletes’ voice can be heard effectively and trust in the IOC’s commitment to genuine athlete involvement can

be developed. These general requirements do not only apply to the postponement of the Olympic Games, they

must also be implemented in the announced participatory processes for Rules 40 and 50 of the Olympic

Charter."

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