Commonwealth to give young people a fighting chance through sport
3 June 2005
Some of the Commonwealth's sporting champions, past and present, are to take part in an initiative to inspire young people to achieve excellence. The newly established Commonwealth Advisory Body on Sport (CABOS) will look at ways to build on the virtues of sport to nurture talent, sharpen skills and attain goals.
The 12-member group of advisers, which includes sport experts from across the Commonwealth, will meet for the first time on 7 June 2005 in Gatineau, Canada.
Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon who will open the meeting says: "Sport empowers young people by teaching them about team spirit, discipline and endurance. It promotes a level playing field and offers positive role models to emulate.
"Bringing together some of the best sport experts in the Commonwealth, CABOS will be able to tap into the huge potential sport represents to create new opportunities," he added.
Former West Indies Cricketer Desmond Haynes and record-breaking Paralympic powerlifter Moekie Grobbelaar will help CABOS highlight the importance of sport as a tool for socio-economic development. CABOS will put forward recommendations to Commonwealth Sports Ministers on policies and programmes to encourage a healthy lifestyle and help young people, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds, to develop their skills and work prospects.
Richard Caborn, UK Minister for Sport, the current Chair of the Commonwealth Sports Ministers, welcomed the new body: "Having chaired the Ministerial meetings, I know how much the Commonwealth has to offer to sport. There is a wealth of experience and knowledge throughout the Commonwealth, and CABOS will help member countries make the most of sport's capacity to change lives. Be it improving people's health, raising children's educational standards, youth leadership or bringing communities together - sport can do it all."
Discussions will also focus on the Commonwealth's ongoing commitment to eradicate the use of drugs in sport. "If you stamp out drugs in sport, you help reduce cheating and ensure fair play. This sets young people on the right track," said the Secretary-General.
The decision to establish CABOS was taken by Commonwealth leaders at their meeting in Abuja, Nigeria in December 2003.
Note to Editors:
The members of CABOS are:
Ms Sue Campbell CBE, Chair of UK Sport and Chief Executive of the Youth Sport Trust
Mr Justice Lino Farrugia Sacco, President, Malta Olympic Committee
Mr Michael Fennell, CD, President of the Commonwealth Games Federation
Ms Moekie Grobbelaar, Paralympian, National Paralympic Committee of South Africa
Mr Desmond Haynes SCM, Chairman, National Sports Council and Sport Consultant to Ministry of Education and Sports, Barbados
Professor Denver Hendricks, Head of Sport and Recreation, South Africa
Dr Bruce Kidd, Dean, Faculty of Physical Education and Health, University of Toronto, Canada
Ms Low Beng Choo, Chair, Women and Sport Committee, Olympic Council of Malaysia and Member of Sport Advisory Panel, Malaysia
Dr Robin E Mitchell, President of the Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee
Mr Mark Peters, Chief Executive, Australian Sports Commission
Mr Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, Minister of Sports and Youth Services, Government of Punjab, and Joint Secretary of the Indian Olympic Association
The First Meeting of the Commonwealth Advisory Body on Sport (CABOS) will be held on 7 June 2005 at the Walker Room, Hilton Lac Leamy Hotel, Gatineau.
For media enquiries, please contact Emmanuel Kattan, Public Affairs Adviser, on: +44 (0) 7730 777 879.
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