Brian Lewis
Published:
Tuesday, September 30, 2014
Things that Matter
It’s easy to be overrun by the emptiness and shallowness of chasing shadows. A life without purpose is akin to chasing shadows. There is a mundane redundancy to daily existence that can become suffocating. Then comes the question is this all? is this it?
The deep foundation needed to scale the commanding heights can be found within core values and principles. If the foundation isn’t deep enough personal, institutional and organisational collapse is always a constant threat.
Motivation and inspiration can usually be found within the core values and principles. But unless a revision of the core values and principles is intentional and planned, it is easy to forget and lose touch with what matters most.
It is necessary from time to time to re-examine, re-affirm and re-state your core values, principles and purpose. In this case we focus on the Olympic movement. The Olympic movement thrives on the backbone of its core values and principles.
CORE VALUES
The three core values of the Olympic Movement are:
Excellence: This value stands for giving one’s best, on and off the field of play. It is not only about winning, but also about participating, making progress against personal goals, striving to be and to do your best in your daily lives and benefiting from a strong body, mind and will.
Friendship: This value encourages the use of sport as a tool for mutual understanding among individuals and people from all over the world. The Olympic Games inspire humanity to overcome political, economic, gender, racial or religious differences and forge friendships in spite of those differences.
Respect: This value incorporates respect for oneself, one's body, for others, for the rules and regulations, for sport and the environment. Related to sport, respect stands for fair play and for the fight against doping and any other unethical behaviour.
THE PRINCIPLES OF OLYMPISM
The principles of Olympism reflect the Olympic values and allow them to be expressed in a way that fosters social change.
Non-Discrimination. The Olympic Movement strives to ensure that sport is practised without any form of discrimination .
Sustainability. The Olympic Movement organises and delivers programmes in a way that promotes sustainable economic, social and environmental development.
Humanism. The Olympic Movement's activities place human beings at the centre of its attention, ensuring that the practice of sport remains a human right.
Universality. Sport belongs to everyone. In all its decisions and actions, the Olympic Movement takes into account the universal impact sport can have on individuals and society.
Solidarity. The Olympic Movement is committed to developing programmes that, together, create a meaningful and comprehensive response to issues within its sphere of influence.
Collaboration between sport, education and culture. The Olympic Movement is committed to promoting the spirit of Olympism, through the cooperation of sport, culture and education.
As the Olympic movement opens up decision-making, ensuring that it is more transparent and accountable, it is through partnership, with government, civil society and the private sector that the movement can maximise the impact of sport for good.
“It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers. Sport has the power to change the world.” Nelson Mandela’s famous quote has provided global sport and the Olympic Movement with a powerful endorsement.
The spoken words of the iconic world figure provide clarity in explaining the intent of the Olympic Movement—sport changes lives.
The Olympic movement is a meeting place where ideas are shared and developed and optimism and creativity are nurtured. It is where sport and the people who play sport are at the centre of every thought and action.
The Olympic values matter. Olympism matters.
Brian Lewis is the President of the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the Olympic Committee.
Sport
The Olympic Games inspire humanity to overcome political, economic, gender, racial or religious differences and forge friendships in spite of those differences.