We are living in an era where sports have emerged as a viable and aspirational career choice for several young individuals. Children across the country dream of following the footsteps and being either Rohit Sharma or Harman Preet Kaur or Sunil Chettri or other global sporting icons. Indian athletes, including para-athletes have consistently made India proud through their commendable performances at global sporting events such as Olympics and Paralympics, thereby reiterating the growing importance and popularity of sports in the contemporary society.
The sports industry has always been dynamic; however, in the recent years it has attracted heightened attention due to various legal and ethical issues. These include player injuries, allegations of match-fixing, the use of performance-enhancing substances, contractual disputes and the over-arching interference of media in the personal and professional lives of sportspersons. The above mentioned challenges underline the necessity of a well-defined legal framework for regulating sporting activities and also protecting the rights of the varied stakeholders involved such as players, organizations, sponsors, etc.
Sports or the sporting industry has always been more than just competition. Behind every match, tournament, and athlete lies a structured framework of rules and regulations that are set in motion to ensure fairness, integrity and accountability is maintained. Right from grassroot levels to global events, sports have consistently been governed by well-defined regulatory and legal systems.
At the heart of Sports Law are a few concepts that have played a vital role in shaping how the industry operates:
- Lex Sportiva – That body of rules, regulations and norms developed by varied sports organization;
- Sports Law– That broader legal framework that governs sports and sporting activities at the national, international and transnational level;
- Lex Olympia – The set of legal norms governing the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Olympic Movement
- Olympic Law – A highly specialized area of law necessary for the hosts of the Olympic games, as mandated by the IOC;
As the sports industry has evolved, so have its legal frameworks and structures. Today, specialized legal frameworks and adjudicatory institutions exist to resolve disputes within the sports ecosystem. More particularly, international sports organization are increasingly required to align their operations with global human rights standards and abide by the various international statutes.
These legal frameworks also establish fundamental principles that sports organizations must follow to ensure that competitions are conducted in a fair and equitable manner.
In my next article, I will attempt to explore the key institutions responsible for resolving sports-related disputes and also shed some light on the primary rights and duties of athletes and sportspersons.
~ADV. SANIKA LALIT