The International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) is a celebration that takes place every year to celebrate the power of sports to effect community development, social change and promote respect and peace.
On April 6, 2022 The International Day of Sport for Development and Peace is an opportunity for the IOC and the entire Olympic Movement emphasize the vital importance of sports in helping to support worldwide recovery efforts following the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Sport is well-equipped to help build an inclusive and humane social system,” said IOC President Thomas Bach. “This crisis has proven more than ever before that sports is the low-cost, high-impact instrument of all nations to help in their recovery efforts.”
The consequences from COVID-19 have shown the impact of COVID-19 pandemic have shown the importance of sports and physical activity to help individuals, communities and countries to navigate through the difficult times by remaining physically and mentally healthy and, consequently, improving their resilience.
International Day of Sport for Development and Peace – Background & History
The event has a historic connection to the very first Modern Olympic Games in 1896, 6 April was designated the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in 2013. It it has been observed every year since the year 2014.
The IOC as a member of Permanent Observer to UN it has proposed and endorsed this idea, since it is awed by its capacity to acknowledge the importance of sports organizations in contributing to human development and social change.
In particular, it provides an occasion to allow the IOC to demonstrate how athletes as well as athletes and the Olympic Movement use sport to encourage peace, reconciliation, and progress, and to emphasize the ability to use these Olympic Games to promote tolerance and unity among athletes and fans, as well as people from across the globe.
Sport as a universal tool for development
In 2015, which was an important moment for sport and for the Olympic Movement, sport was recognized as an “important facilitator” in sustainable development, and was included in the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. In this regard the IDSDP offers a unique platform for advocating greater investment in sport as well as the infrastructure that supports it, as well as quality physical education for young people within the government.
This Day provides a unique chance to promote sport and physical activities as a cost-effective, useful tool to meet the many demands in the fields of health, education and youth development, social inclusion as well as gender equality, peacebuilding as well as sustainable growth.
The use of sport to encourage peace and development is in the core of the IOC’s mandate since its founding at the age of 1894. Pierre de Coubertin, the IOC’s founding father, was explicit in his determination to use Olympism as a way to encourage harmony among people and nations in all forms, from informal practice to competitive sports.
It is also a chance to highlight all the ways it is possible for the IOC, National Olympic Committees, International and National Sports Associations, sports clubs as well as non-governmental and governmental organizations as well as neighbourhood associations, and the other organizations and individuals use sports to improve the lives of people around the world.
Each year, the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace is also a perfect supplement to the celebrations on Olympic Day, which, first introduced in 1948 by the IOC in 1948, marks the birth of modern Olympic Movement, each year on the 23rd of June. Millions of people across different countries participate in a myriad of sports to cultural and educational activities.
Finally I want to say, At present the world is confronted with generations-old challenges that range from hunger and poverty to climate change, and the COVID-19 epidemic. More than ever, we must to work together to overcome our differences and work as a unit in order to conquer these challenges and build an environment that is safer, more peaceful better and sustainable world for everyone.
So guys join the hands and don’t forget to celebrate 6 April as the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace. We will keep you update with more exclusive updates – Thanks for Reading!
