Michael Phelps and Mark Spitz to Partake in Doha GOALS Summit

22-time Olympic medalist, Michael Phelps, has been announced as one of 14 world-class athletes participating in the Doha GOALS forum in Los Angeles July 25-27th.

Doha GOALS, which is an abbreviation for ‘Gathering Of All Leaders in Sport’, assembles yearly with the purpose of creating partnerships and initiatives for global progress through sport.  The four major themes the group will tackle at this year’s forum include ‘building a movement through sport, the imperative for inclusion, sport’s power to create bridges across divides in our societies, and sport as a catalyst for transformation and change.’

GOALS describes itself as an organization that creates a call to action for policymakers in such realms as athlete activism on environment and social issues, societal tolerance via sport and the global obesity epidemic.  The Special Olympics is also a major topic at this year’s convention, as the meeting is taking place during the 2015 Special Olympics World Games in L.A.

Phelps will be joining such sporting legends as Nadia Comenici, Carl Lewis, Seb Coe and fellow swimmer Mark Spitz. As for his participation, Phelps says, “I am honored to join several world-class athletes and global leaders at Doha GOALS Forum to discuss how sport can help drive social change. My dream has always been to change the sport of swimming and I have seen first-hand how sport can positively impact communities.” He added, “I look forward to sharing my personal experiences and hearing inspiring stories from others as we talk about ways to continue to utilize the power of sport for the greater good.”

H.E. Sheikh bin Mubarak Al Thani, the Executive Director of Doha GOALS, added, “We are proud to have an elite list of global athletes participating in this year’s Doha GOALS Forum because we know this diversity greatly enhances our panel discussions. These world-class athletes are both champions in their sport as well as leaders in the community and we appreciate their commitment toward achieving our mission of social impact via sport.”