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OAS and ICSS Organize Conference on Security at Major Sporting Events

  June 23, 2015

The Organization of American States (OAS) and the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS) will co-organize a regional conference entitled “Major Sporting Events: The Crossroads of Security and Socio-Economic Development,” this Thursday, June 25 and Friday, June 26 at OAS headquarters in Washington, DC.

The conference will bring together government ministers from OAS member states, representatives of international organizations and the private sector to promote multi-sectorial cooperation and international commitments to ensure the positive socioeconomic impacts of safe and sustainable sporting events in the Americas.

The opening remarks to the event will be delivered by the Secretary General of the OAS, Luis Almagro, and the President of ICSS, Mohammed Hanzab beginning at 9:30 EDT (13:30 GMT) on Thursday, June 25. Among the participants will be former Brazilian football player and World Cup winner Roberto Carlos; political commentator James Carville; and former US Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutiérrez. The closing session of the conference will include the Chief of Staff of the OAS Secretary General, Jacinth Lorna Henry-Martin; the ICSS Secretary General Helmut Spahn; and the Deputy Secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mayorkas.

The conference will include discussion of issues including the financial integrity in sport, emerging and future threats for sport, financial and social impact of major sporting events, peace as an element of their legacy, protecting human rights and vulnerable populations in the context of major sporting events, and the impact of sport on tourism, among others.

The program of the event is available here.

Media Contact: Monica Reyes – [email protected] +1 (202)-370-4929

The event will be broadcast live on the OAS Website.

WHAT: Regional Conference “Major Sporting Events: The Crossroads of Security and Socio-Economic Development”

WHEN: Thursday, June 25 and Friday, June 26

WHERE: Hall of the Americas
Organization of American States
17th Street & Constitution Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20006

Reference: AVI-124/15