Valérie Grand’Maison is very well known in the swimming world as an established Paralympian from Canada. She competed in the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing and the 2012 Paralympics in London, setting multiple World Records. Before retiring in 2014, she earned 9 Paralympic medals, including 4 gold.
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This is in response to a number of things. Mostly because now that I have been working in international development for a couple years, I realize that I will only be truly effective in changing attitudes in the realm of sports as I have been deeply involved in this culture for most of my life. With the article on olympic swimmers swimming through sewage, I saw a window of opportunity to engage the swimming community on issues that I am passionate about.
This is not an opinion piece, but the start of a complex and often confusing discussion. I am hoping today to open a conversation about how the sports community, particularly federations and high-level athletes and coaches, can engage in the development of the places where training camps and competitions are held. In other words, how can we travel the world in the pursuit of our athletic goals while being sensitive about the long-term implications on the local context of the places we compete it?
Ten years ago, I participated in my first IPC World Championships in Durban, South Africa. To this day, the images of this city, through the lens of my 18 year-old self, are vivid by in their harshness and stark contradiction to what I knew about South Africa at the time. The rules imposed by Swimming Canada were unusually strict and seemed over-the-top to my 18 year-old, naive self. I could only understand their necessity in the light of a very unfortunate incident that happened to another team’s coach, deeply affecting all those present at the competition. I left the country feeling frustrated and intimidated with the situation in South Africa, even telling the flight attendant that I wish to never step on South African soil again. I have experienced so-called cultural shocks a number of times after that, namely in Rio and in Beijing, where I competed in two of the most beautiful facilities I ever dove in. There facilities marked a stark contrast with the blatant inequalities prevalent in favelas or heavy pollution. Why would these countries invest in hosting international events, when clearly, a large proportion of the population does not have access to essential needs and basic human rights, such as a shelter and clean water? Yet, I did not let myself get distracted, I instead turned a blind eye and focused on my performances. I as an athlete didn’t question my place or my role being there, my only focus was the competition.
This begs the question, what is the role of high-level sports federations and athletes in national and international development? Many programs invest in sport in communities to successfully target youth empowerment, HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, increased participation of girls and women in society and other development activities . Yet, while major sports events hold a much greater potential in terms of resources, outreach and political commitment, issues of development are often neglected and remain a minor priority . This is evident in the water conditions of open water events in Rio, or on the lack of sustainable and redistributive strategies in the aftermath of international events, such as the record-breaking air pollution levels of Beijing reached in 2015, a few years after the city politically and financially committed to reduce toxic air through extensive measures before and during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
Undeniably, a huge part of the responsibility for development rests on international organisations and the government of the host country, whereby plans and promises of future development and empowerment are paramount to sealing a nomination bid. It remains evident however, that the development is understood in terms of economic growth, where considerable gains are obtained through tourism, national and international investments in infrastructure, short-term employment opportunities, etc.. Development is therefore used as a rhetorical tool in the bidding process, where the commercialization of international events create a promise for national and international investment and resources not only to the domain (geographic and conceptual) of the event, but also to strengthen the overall functioning of the host city. It is not clear however how the event translates in the broad development of the country, as it is highly context-specific and event-dependent. An increasing body of academic literature and civil society organisations have demonstrated interests and focused research on in the medium and long-terms impacts on environmental and socio-cultural dimensions of major international sports events, yet there seems to be a lack of commitment to ensuring that the vast array of sectors affected by such an investments are monitored and that gaps are addressed.
True, athletes are paid and are expected to perform no matter where they are in the world. I have competed in almost 20 different countries in my swimming career, and never thought twice about it; I was there to perform. In this sense, the sports culture operates in a vacuum, detached from global dynamics. Yet, international sports events hold many political features, from increasing allegiance to domestic politics to foreign affairs interests. So, why as athletes and federations, do we distance ourselves from the broader implications of international competitions?
I think where athletes and sports federations can have a positive impact is in the innovation of approaches they can bring to ensure an understanding of the context of the host city and country, as well as of the longer terms impacts of competing there. They also hold the a powerful voice to raise awareness at home and abroad about the dynamics of different countries and how sports can truly play an effective development role in both developed and developing countries. Importantly, we need to hold international organisations and host governments accountable for a fair distribution of gains in all sectors and activities of citizenship, and to ensure that the best conditions possible are maintained for athletes and locals during and after, long after, the competition is held.
Contrary to my 18-year-old self, I returned to South Africa where I have spent the majority of the last year, working in the field of gender-based violence. I was afforded an opportunity to work in a township of Durban, not very far from where the IPC World Championships were held in 2006. I feel the same frustration about the difficult realities of the vast majority of inhabitants of the country, especially in my line of work, and still felt scared at times, for my personal safety. Yet, this time I withheld judgments, tried to understand the context and deeply rooted tensions, and offered support where I was needed. Back in Canada, I’m now equipped with a broader perspective for the dynamics of marginalization of oppression, even very present here, and great appreciation of my privileges. Hopefully, processing culture shock and finding meaningful ways to pay it forward will become an integral part of sports culture, and I believe that athletes, coaches do hold some responsibility in ensuring a healthier world for everybody.
References
Billings, Stephen B., and J. Scott Holladay (2012). “Should cities go for the gold? The long‐term impacts of hosting the Olympics.” Economic inquiry 50.3: 754-772.
Coalter, Fred (2009). “Sport-in-development: accountability or development?.” Sport and international development. Palgrave Macmillan UK: 55-75.
Cox, L. (2016, May 5). Olympians Shouldn’t Swim Through Sewage. New York Times. Retrieved May 6, 2016, fromhttp://www.nytimes.com/2016/
Fritz, A. (2015, November 30). Beijing chokes on off-the-charts air pollution as thick smog settles over northern China. The Washington Post. Retrieved May 8, 2016, from https://www.washingtonpost.
Jing, L. (2013). Pollution-free days of Beijing Olympics now just a happy memory. The South China Morning Post. Retrieved May 8, 2016, from http://www.scmp.com/news/
Levermore, Roger, and Aaron Beacom,(2009). eds. Sport and international development. London: Palgrave Macmillan.