The Pope, UN Secretary General and IOC President join forces on 'Faith and Sport' in the Vatican
Leaders of Sport, Religion and Politics came together for World Conference on Faith and Sport on Wednesday.
The Global Conference on Faith and Sport in the Vatican saw IOC President Thomas Bach, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Pope Francis give welcoming speeches to the three day conference which aims to put “sport at the service of humanity”.
The Pope told participants to “explore the good that sport and faith can bring to our society”. He told them “sport brings great values to society where all people can join in despite their ethnic or religious background”.
The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon thanked IOC President Thomas Bach “for his vision” in setting up the Refugee Olympic Team which competed at the Olympic Games Rio 2016. He said it was “a powerful reminder of sport's ability to promote dignity and human rights”.
For his part, IOC President Thomas Bach told the audience in the Vatican, “like faith, sport teaches us the importance of living in solidarity and peace with our fellow humans”.
“One of the many values shared by sport and faith is the respect for the dignity and equality of all human beings," he added.
The inaugural conference is described by organizers as a “chance for a new drive to promote and extol the virtues of Faith and Sport in our lives”. The three-day meeting is organized under the six principles “shared by faith and sport” of Compassion, Respect, Love, Enlightenment, Balance and Joy.