Integrity in sport update: Tennis triggers most betting integrity alerts over past quarter (ESSA)

Very positive news this week, as the International Olympic Committee’s Integrity and Compliance Hotline is now fully operational. The hotline offers a reporting mechanism for potential cases of competition manipulation and other violations of the IOC Code of Ethics. It allows for anonymous reporting and all the information received is treated confidentially.

Also in the news this week, suspensions have been handed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India. Two teams (Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings) have been suspended for two years for their role in an illegal betting scandal in 2013, while cricketer Hiken Shah from the Mumbai Ranji has been suspended for making a ‘corrupt approach’ to a fellow player.

CURRENT INVESTIGATION

Greece

Dozens of the most senior figures in football in Greece stand accused of what would be, if proven, arguably the most serious match-fixing crimes ever committed. Among those in the dock are the former president of the Hellenic Football Federation (HFF), Giorgos Sarris, and the current owner of Olympiacos, Evangelos Marinakis. As well as being accused of forming a criminal gang to control the game in Greece, Marinakis is alleged to have ordered the bombing of a bakery owned by one referee who refused to do the organisation’s bidding. Many of those accused have already either been banned from any football activity or from leaving the country – or both. All deny any wrongdoing.

Source: Ben Rumsby, "Match-fixing case in Greece just adds to sense of Greek chaos", 15 July 2015, Telegraph, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/news/11742597/Match-fixing-case-in-Greece-just-adds-to-sense-of-Greek-chaos.html

GOOD PRACTICE

India

The Union sports ministry will get down to brass tacks yet again to see that the bill drafted two years ago to tackle the menace of illegal betting and corruption in sports is introduced in the monsoon session of Parliament. The Bill advocated a jail term of five years for the guilty and hefty monetary penalties amounting to five times the amount gained through fixing a match, with the minimum amount being Rs 10 lakh. Contending that the Prevention of Sporting Fraud Bill - which was drafted by a committee headed by former chief justice Mukul Mudgal after the spot-fixing scam rocked the 2013 IPL season - will be an effective deterrent, the ministry said it would 'seriously' push for it in the coming days. The Prevention of Sporting Fraud Bill is a revamped version of the Prevention of Dishonesty in Sports Bill of 2001 which was drafted after cricketers found guilty by the Central Bureau of Investigation in the match-fixing case of 2000 escaped penal punishment as there was no law relating to match-fixing or betting in the country.

Source: Narain Swamy, "Sporting Fraud Bill set to return to Parliament", 16 July 2015, Times of India, https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/more-sports/others/Sporting-Fraud-Bill-set-to-return-to-Parliament/articleshow/48094099.cms

International Olympic Committee

Open to athletes, coaches, referees and the public, the International Olympic Committee (IOC)’s Integrity and Compliance Hotline is now fully operational. The web-based hotline, which was launched last April, offers a new reporting mechanism for potential cases of competition manipulation as well as other violations of the IOC Code of Ethics. Reports can be made anonymously, and all information received is dealt with confidentially. Anyone can now report suspicious behaviour or activities related to competition manipulation and infringements of the IOC Code of Ethics or other matters which fall under the IOC’s jurisdiction. These include financial misconduct or other legal, regulatory and ethical breaches. The new tool is fully operational and accessible via the IOC website at www.olympic.org/integrityhotline. The reporting is guided by a set of questions, which facilitate categorisation of the incident, and the gathering of important facts and, where available, evidence.

Source: "New IOC Integrity and Compliance Hotline fully operational", 17 July 2015, International Olympic Committee, https://www.olympic.org/news/new-ioc-integrity-and-compliance-hotline-fully-operational/246562

Monday, 20 July 2015