Brussels, 14/03/2007 (Agence Europe) - At the end of the informal summit of European ministers responsible for sport, held on 12-13 March in Stuttgart, the proposal from the German presidency calling for the setting up of a European anti-doping agency network, received the support of all the delegations attending the event. The German minister for the interior, Wolfgang Schäuble, explained, “this network should improve coordinating and sharing information between the different agencies fighting doping at a European level. It will also allow for the initiation and coordination of prevention campaigns at European and junior championships”. The criminal liability of athletes caught in possession of performance enhancing products was also raised. In this connection, and following the study of different national legislation, the European Commission will present its conclusions during the informal summit under the Portuguese presidency on 25 October.
On the last day of the summit, European ministers also held an exchange of views on “Sport and Integration” and underlined the potential sport associations had in terms of social integration. Delegations want to encourage sport federations to highlight competencies acquired by their employees and voluntary workers. A system for awarding certificates, illustrating the capacities specifically acquired in a given association, may also be set up.
Mr Schäuble concluded the debates and welcomed the results they had obtained. He affirmed that “the two days of the conference were characterised by an extremely constructive atmosphere and we, as ministers responsible for sport, were able to achieve considerable progress in different areas”. On the first day of the workshop, the following subjects were tackled: Sport and the economy; sport and violence; as well as the future Commission White Paper on the role of sport in Europe, to be presented during the second half of this year (EUROPE 9385). (gc)