SOPROS | Assessing, Evaluationg and Implementing Athletes' Social Protection in Olympic Sports
Project Description
In recent years, several cases involving issues related to the social protection of elite athletes have made headlines and raised public awareness of these issues. Unfortunately, these headlines often refer to tragic accidents involving elite athletes, but issues such as pension payments, healthcare, and maternity leave have also entered the realm of Olympic elite sports governance. However, recent data from the EMPLOYS project show that social protection for many athletes in Olympic sports is limited across the continent. Most athlete-focused social protection systems rely on ad hoc collaboration and coordination between sports federations and public authorities. The actual roles and responsibilities of public and private actors in the practical implementation of social protection for athletes have not yet been clearly defined.
Recent policy initiatives at the transnational and European levels have recognized the need to raise social protection standards for athletes, e.g., the Council of Europe in 2021 and the ILO in 2020. Furthermore, athletes are increasingly positioning themselves as key actors in the Olympic Movement and are calling for greater involvement in decision-making processes that affect their lives both as athletes and as individuals. This highlights the importance of involving all stakeholders in elite sport who are responsible for regulating and implementing social protection for athletes.
Against this backdrop, the SOPROS project aims to promote integrity and values in sport by assessing, evaluating, and implementing social protection for athletes in Olympic sports. It can be understood as a deepening of the Erasmus+ EMPLOYS project in the area of social protection for athletes, which is one of the six core dimensions of labor relations for athletes in Olympic sports. It will build on the solid foundation and findings of the EMPLOYS project and take the next steps toward creating a framework for implementing concrete measures for athletes in the specific policy area of social protection. The project consortium includes four academic partners engaged in research and analysis of sports governance, sports policy, and sports law, as well as five policy partners with extensive expertise in athlete employment and social relations.