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UP ANOC COMMISSION FOR THE COORDINATION OF THE NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMIES' ACTIVITIES ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMIES PEDAGOGY OF OLYMPISM : THE OLYMPIC ACADEMY by CONRADO DURÁNTEZ President of the Paniberian Association of Olympic Academies 2. THE OLYMPIC ACADEMY, BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY 3. INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY, EVOLUTION 5. WHAT IS A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY ? 6. HOW TO CREATE A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY 7. FUNCTIONING OF A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY 8. ACTIVITIES AND OBJECTIVES OF A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY 9. SUBJECTS OF STUDY, RESEARCH AND DIFFUSION OF A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY 10. THE IBEROAMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF OLYMPIC ACADEMIES 11. ORGANIZATION CHART OF THE ACADEMY NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMIES 1. AKADEMIA, ACADEMY The word Akademia is Greek, its historical origin comes from the name of the philosophical school founded by Plato in 387 BC, located in a house with a garden outside 2. THE OLYMPIC ACADEMY - BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY For Carl Diem, a dynamic promoter of the International Olympic Academy, the historical background of the Olympic Academy is the institution of the nomofilakos or law keepers, priests that in Olympia advised or instructed the judges of the tests and competitions to carry out at the ancient Olympic Games (hellanodikes) about the rightful sense and correct finality of the Great Festival, as well as the principles inspiring its competitions. The ancient Olympic Games, which historically started in the year 776 BC, had their normal historical evolution in the human events, with the inexorable stages of birth, boom, splendor, crisis and disappearance. At the start of the 4th Century BC, the peak of the political influences, professionalism and corruption, mortally wounded the Olympic Games institution, which would disappear, suppressed as a consequence of the Decree of the year 392 BC dictated by the Hispano-Roman Emperor Theodosius I the Great. Centuries passed with no sports practice and competitions until at the last third of the 18th century and the first half of the 19th century, a group of pedagogues would claim it as a fundamental element of education (Federico Luis Jhan in The modern Olympic Games started their historical progress with those of But the two subsequent Olympic editions (Paris 1900 and St. Louis 1904) constituted two reiterated and successive failures despite the Olympic ideal conceived by de Coubertin, who was alarmed at the incomprehension that organizers of both editions, had expressed towards his work. De Coubertin was a sports lover, but not only and exclusively a sportsman. He was above all a pedagogue, an educator, a philanthropist, a humanist, who had always conceived sport and the great Olympic festival as factors generating peace and culture. That is why, facing the negative impact of such events, he tried to promote the cultural side of Olympism, through a series of Olympic Congresses (Le Havre 1897; Brussels 1905, Paris 1906 and 1914, Lausanne 1913 and 1921 and Prag 1925) during which and through the same, he wanted to manifest the universal, cultural and educative aspect of that cosmopolitan democracy instituted by himself, based in the punctual appointment of the Olympic Games, which should constitute, according to him, in 1924, “the big quadrennial festival of the human springtime , in order and with rhythm, which had to be maintained to the service of the spirit.. …” The transitory cultural impact of the Olympic Congresses did not fully satisfy Coubertin as an adequate system of surveillance, diffusion and guarantee of Olympic principles and freedom, and that is why he would permanently search for the constitution of a balanced organization carrying out this function. At the end of the Games of the IX Olympiad in De Coubertin died unexpectedly on September 2nd, 1937 when walking in the The idea and intention of de Coubertin had to be retaken by his friend and collaborator Carl Diem, as well as by Ioannis Ketseas, prestigious sports Greek leader, who became an IOC member in 1946. In 1938, Diem proposed to the Greek Olympic Committee the creation, on Greek soil of an Olympic Academy, which was accepted and decided by the same, in June 1939, after having requested and obtained the IOC authorization, the project which was in suspense before the explosion of war. In 1947, during the 41st Session of the IOC in Two years later, in January 1949, Ioannis Ketseas, in collaboration with Carl Diem, drafted an explanatory Memorandum and a project for the creation on Greek soil of an Olympic Academy. It specified the fears expressed by de Coubertin during his last stay in On April 28, 1949, the 44th IOC Session in Once accepted by the IOC the creation of the Olympic academy, Ketseas, on behalf of his country, thanked the members for the support granted to him and promising at the same time that his government would make every effort for the Olympic centre created to become “the spiritual centre of the World Olympic Movement”. Without wasting time and under the effects of the triumph obtained, the Greek Olympic Movement sent the pertaining invitation to the respective Olympic Committees of several countries requesting the delivery of representatives to take part at the first meeting. But a deceiving reality would be the response to this first try. Out of the eighty invitations, only four of them received an answer and actually with a negative decision. The official origin of the International Olympic Academy can be centred in the conference of Carl Diem : An Ellis of our times: meaning and projects of the international Olympic Academy, programmed on June 16, 1961 on the evocative hill called “The amphitheatre” .
Since its foundation close to the threshold of the new millennium, the International Olympic Academy has staged forty annual official sessions at which close to six thousand youngsters have participated. The Greek Olympic Committee, through its governing body for the International Olympic Academy or Eforia, has regularly and efficiently organized the different and successive courses of the Academy. Only the 24th Session corresponding to 1964, did not take place, due to the political tension provoked by the situation in The initial courses of Olimpia were just organized by young participants, progressively enlarging the access of the same to other political and Olympic levels, due to the large series of possibilities offered by the new fixed venues inaugurated in 1967 and successively enlarged and conditioned. Therefore, several sectors of groups linked to Olympism and Sport, have carried out sessions at Olympia (Physicians, trainers, journalists, Federations, teachers, students of National Olympic Academies, Associations of Physical Education Professors and Sports historians, Federative Clubs, etc) but at the same time, and from 1973, they have programmed fixed Sessions, generally biennial, addressed to concrete groups, such as those organized for Professors (since 1973) members of National Olympic Committees and International Federations (since 1978), officials of Higher Institutes of Physical Education and sport journalists (since 1986) and Presidents, Directors of National Olympic Academies (since 1988) and post-graduates (since 1993). The International Olympic Academy annually publishes the works of each course, with official minutes in three languages; English, French, and Greek, which are moreover, those of official and common use at conferences and debates and with simultaneous translation. Sporadically, they have extended to other languages the working languages to be used on specific courses, such as Spanish and Arabic. And the IOA, as mentioned above, is directed by an Administration Council or Eforia, whose members, generally ten, are assigned by the Greek Olympic Committee among the members of such Committee as well as important Greek personalities of culture and sport. The IOC, in order to demonstrate its decisive support to the International Olympic Academy, created a special Commission in 1963, for the Olympic Academy, integrated at the time by Ioannis Ketseas, as President, the Marquis of Exeter, Georgio de Stefani and Ivar Vind, as well as Avery Brundage and Armand Massard as honorary members. Such Commission, which worked as an operative working group and celebrating annual sessions up to 1998, has been integrated into the Culture Commission of the IOC from that date. For the annual youth courses in The IOC, through Olympic Solidarity, has provided financial support to the International Olympic Academy since 1978. At present, Olympic Solidarity refunds 50% of the transportation expense for one man and one woman per NOC, whose accommodation, meal and transportation in 4. NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMIES The attendance of representatives of the NOCs at the original courses of The centre generated the first National Olympic Academy, organized and programmed as the IOA, and acting as collaborator of the same and constituted in a solemn session on November 25, 1968, presided by the Spanish Olympic Committee at that time Juan Antonio Samaranch. In the 1960s, three new National Olympic Academies were founded, that of the United States (1976), China Taipei (1978) and Japan (1980), generalizing the interest for the Olympic Academy, in the 1980s and putting in place on the first half of such period 22 more Academies; nine in America (Dominican Republic 1980, Chile 1981, Argentina, Ecuador and Bolivia 1982, Canada, Mexico and Uruguay 1983, Peru 1984), two in Asia (Korea 1983 and Hong–Kong 1985), two in Africa ( Egypt 1981 and Benin 1985) that of Australia (1985) and eight in Europe (Austria, Bulgaria, Belgium and Great Britain (1982), Germany and Ireland (1983), Switzerland (1984) and Hungary (1985). The IOC decided to promote, in a decisive way, the creation of Olympic Academies in different Olympic Committees which had not yet constituted them, for which, he convened a monographic meeting on the subject in Lausanne, on November 14 and 15, 1982, and to which attended the Presidents of the National Olympic Academies existing at the time (Dominican Republic, Chile, Egypt, Spain, United States, England, Japan, and China Taipei). The Session, presided by Mohamed Mzali and with the attendance of Nikolaos Nissiotis and Otto Szimiszek as President and Dean of the IOA, adopted the decision to recommend to the IOC to promote the creation of National Olympic Academies, which was accepted by President Samaranch upon his assistance to the closing act and which led, in 1984, to the President sending a circular letter to all the NOCs, promoting the constitution of National Olympic Academies. The impulse then generated by the IOC, provoked a real creation of National Olympic Academies up to a total of one hundred and fifteen existing today. The creation within the Association of National Olympic Committees, ANOC, of a Commission for the promotion of National Olympic Academies, as well as in other Continental Associations, has meant new and important support measures to the foundation and progress of the National Olympic Academies. 5. WHAT IS A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY ? We may consider as a National Olympic Academy, any Commission or group which, with the authorization and support of the respective National Olympic Committee, carries out, by delegation, the main mission pertaining to the NOCs, that is, to spread and defend in their country the philosophical principles of the Olympic Charter. The excessive and progressive specialization of sports, makes the efforts of the NOCs to be focused in the improvement of the physical training of athletes they must send to the Games, often forgetting the fundamental task, which is the diffusion of the principles of Olympism whose objective, empowers them and qualifies them as “Olympic” organizations. Such unbalance of action had already been denounced by de Coubertin in 1920, when he underlined : ".... we should be careful to make sure that the technical point of view does not lead to leave out the pedagogical point of view ..” The Olympic Charter has systematically requested the NOCs this type of Olympic pedagogy, until, and as a consequence of the reform of July 16, 1990, on the occasion of the 96th IOC Session, held in Tokyo, they proceeded to focus their attention on Rule 31, on the mission and functions of the NOCs, to which, after requiring and recommending the diffusion of the Olympic principles in their country, collaborating in the diffusion and teaching, with all types of education programmes, in Schools as well as in universities, promoting the creation of Institutions dedicated to Olympic Education, it lays down that…they shall Promote above all the creation and the activities of National Olympic Academies... As a consequence of the above, the Institution of the Olympic Academy is the only organization of official Olympic pedagogy and specifically reflected within the Olympic Charter, at international level, which is the support the IOC grants the International Olympic Academy (Rule 2-14) and at national level, with the dedication and support the National Olympic Committees provide to the National Olympic Academies (Rule 31-2-1). 6. HOW TO CREATE A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY The setting up of a National Olympic Academy within a National Olympic Committee is often a difficult, complex and delicate task, due to the traditional weight of the term “Academia” and for those not familiarized with the subject, it means that such creation may mean the existence of a great building, quite a large library and the support of experts and qualified members, as well as an adequate support of a secretariat working in the official languages of the IOC. That is why, on various occasions and as a consequence of the above, the idea of the creation of an Olympic Academy generates suspicion in the members of the NOC. However, according to the Rule and from an operational point of view, an Olympic Academy is and has to be a Commission of the NOC itself, integrated by members of the same, as well as other suitably qualified persons, usually appointed by the Executive Committee of the NOC itself. The president of the National Olympic Academy must have a university degree and be active in the Olympic Movement, and be a member of the NOC Executive Committee, officially or ex officio. The members can be professors, presidents of federations or clubs, Olympic athletes or important journalists engaged in the diffusion of Olympism. It is convenient that the NOA works with a regulation approved by the NOC, setting its objectives and the functioning and termination of mandates or re-election of its members. The NOC will have to financially support the functioning of the NOA including its annual balance of budgets of expenses, as well as providing the administrative support. The creation of a NOA has to be focused on an official ceremony to which the NOC will give the greatest possible publicity, so that the country is aware of its existence due to the task expected from the same. 7. FUNCTIONING OF A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY A NOA can be considered as a Pedagogical institution of "three Ds": disseminating Olympic principles, defending the same and denouncing all pressures foreign to the sports ethic and the Olympic ideal, which may try to alter or corrupt such ideal. Such generic aims of the National Olympic Academy are globally focused on the diffusion of Olympism at all the social stages, considering the same as a life philosophy using sport as a way of its formation, peace, democratic, humanitarian and ecological principles . The basic and fundamental task of a National Olympic Academy consists in organizing an annual official course, for Olympic diffusion at university level, and make a selection among the students to represent the country in the yearly international course of the IOA at With the same objective and goal, the NOA will have to participate as largely as possible in the organization of activities of Olympic diffusion in schools, providing teachers with the adequate pedagogical material for such diffusion. We should specify that the work of a NOA as a Commission, sub Commission or group linked to a NOC has to be continuous and permanent in its condition as a central organization, where persons, organizations, athletes or official entities may gather reports, help or collaboration. Therefore, we cannot consider the existence of a NOA, or at least it would be an atypical NOA, when such duty ‑ as may happen in some cases ‑ is carried out by a single person, generally limited to the bureaucratic aspect of the specific correspondence, or when such duties are fulfilled by systematic courses or alternative courses on Olympism that various universities may include in their program. In the countries where a NOA has acquired enough roots, the creation of provincial delegations or Olympic Studies Centres is convenient, in the different university districts of the country, which as filial bodies, spread Olympism in their departments in close collaboration with the NOA and the NOC. An important task of the NOA is also the support in its mission of diffusion to the alumni or participants of the country selected and sent as representatives to the IOA Sessions. Such graduates have started to constitute Associations whose activity should have all the support of the NOA. Likewise, in the yearly courses organized by the NOA it is very important and convenient that, and apart from other interventions of qualified persons, they participate as lecturers, the representatives of the country who attended the last course of the IOA and that in a thorough and updated manner, they express their impressions (usually enthusiastic) on what the participation at the Olympia courses means. In any case, those selected to the IOA should present a report to the NOA on the development of the course they have participated in. They will also have to program, within the framework of the NOA activities, the organization of the Olympic Day, and if possible, on the historical date of June 23 each year, and apart from organizing the traditional race, we should take advantage of the occasion to outline the diffusion of Olympic ideals with more exhibitions of Olympic Posters, sports philately, projection of Olympic films, etc. The NOA, in its Olympic pedagogical mission, should try, through its members, to publish articles, news or summaries, on the history of the Olympic principles, introducing them in the national press of a higher level and occasionally taking advantage of timely everyday opportunities or historical anniversaries, extending their action to the sports journalists, reviews of Federations of the Centres of Physical Education, NOC publications, etc.. 8. ACTIVITIES AND OBJECTIVES OF A NATIONAL OLYMPIC ACADEMY The generic task which corresponds to a NOA is, as already said, the dissemination at national level and at all social levels, of the historical, ethical and philosophical principles that support and confirm the Olympic Movement. That is why, in its pedagogical and social objective, these are groups integrated apart from the university and school field, by elite sport persons, members and Presidents of Federations, sport journalists, students of Physical Education, sports physicians, professors, referees and judges, intellectuals and artists. We will pay special attention and take care that at the courses, sessions or cycles the NOA organizes as such, they teach, spread and discuss subjects of the specific objective of the NOA, corresponding to the Olympic Movement, its history and its principles, avoiding, as happens in so many occasions, that the so-called sports administration subjects be object of the NOA activities, as despite their importance, they are not within specific aims of a NOA. The following are specific objectives of a NOA: The creation and promotion of an Olympic museum, as an autonomous entity within the NOC or, contributing to create a section on Olympism in the public The Constitution, maintenance and progressive bibliographic enlargement of an Olympic Library within the NOC, as a source of study and Organization of an Olympic video library. In this task, as in the previous ones, it is important to ask for catalogues of publications and films existing, to the Olympic Museum of the IOC in Participation at the courses of History of Sport contributing with materials dedicated to Olympism. Trying to introduce a subject, seminar or subject on Olympism in the subject matter of the courses for professors of Physical Education. Issuing Printing posters or announcing boards of the official courses and activities of the NOA. Annually issuing the minutes compiling the conferences given and the works developed on the NOA Official course. Printing stickers or similar | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
