“We are concerned about the Olympics as it is in Asia this year. There is a lot of bets there; Asia is the world center for sports betting. It is something cultural for them,” said the COB legal director, Luciano Hostins, to Estadão. “The manipulation of competitions linked to betting is considered in the world sport as one of the greatest threats to the integrity of the sport. It would be no different in the context of the Olympic Games,” he explains.
As Olympic sports are still not the main target of manipulators, the COB was inspired by football to develop its Policy to Combat the Manipulation of Results. To do so, it turned to a well-known Brazilian football specialist. Paulo Schmitt, with a 12-year history at the sport's Superior Court of Sports and president of the São Paulo Football Federation's Integrity Committee, helped to prepare the document.
“We know that there is a huge incidence of match-fixing problems in football around the world. But we already have strong news and evidence that handlers are moving into other sports. This is something that worries the IOC (International Olympic Committee), which created its code against manipulation. And now the COB has this concern because of the Tokyo Games,” Schmitt told Estadão, who recalls the risks of money laundering in some cases.
For the specialist, the arrival of online betting companies in Brazil is also a concern. “Our market and our legislation are lacking. It is not fully regulated. I have already submitted proposals at the time the decree was being drafted. The decree had no mention of integrity, for example.”
At the same time, these companies must act as partners of the COB. “They are partners because they are victims too. When a guy bets, they have back that bet. And there are other companies that provide services to betting sites to detect manipulation of results by analyzing the behavior of betting," explained Hostins.
The COB also foresees partnerships with entities and investigative bodies, such as the Federal Police and Interpol. The Policy on Combating the Manipulation of Results will have a specialized committee to investigate complaints. “It's difficult, but it needs to be done. We are going to use the resources of the COB itself, with the natural limitations of a private entity,” stated the legal director.
Depending on the investigation, the case may be referred to law enforcement authorities, who have more resources for investigation. COB rules can lead to suspension and removal. But the authorities could open a criminal case for fraud that could lead to the offender's arrest.
Among the Olympic sports, tennis is one of those that has registered the largest number of cases of manipulation in recent years. The demand is such that the main entities of the sport in the world have formed the Tennis Integrity Unit (TIU). One of the cases investigated by the TIU was that of Brazilian João Souza. Feijão, as he is known, was banned from professional sport and fined US$ 200,000 in early 2020.
COB's new policy is based on three pillars: education, complaints and intelligence, and adequacy of norms. Therefore, athletes and managers of all Olympic sports will have access to a booklet with guidelines for the Olympics. In the future, there will also be courses and lectures on the subject. At the same time, the entity is working on the elaboration of its own Code of Prevention and Combat to the Manipulation of Competitions.
"The COB is responsible for protecting the Olympic values and the fight against match manipulation, as well as the fight against doping in sport, is one of the points of attention that we assume as a priority in Brazil, supporting this important IOC initiative," said Paulo Wanderley, president of the COB.
The initiative of the Brazilian entity has already received praise from the IOC. “We salute the Olympic Committee of Brazil for adopting the policy to combat manipulation of competitions, based on the three-pillar strategy of the Olympic Movement Unit. We look forward to continuing to support the COB in developing relevant activities, adopting standards, and developing awareness and intelligence activities,” said Friedrich Martens, head of the Olympic Movement Unit on the Prevention of Manipulation of Competitions at the IOC.
COMPLAINTS
To report manipulation of results, it is possible to contact the COB through the official website, in the Transparency area, or by telephone (0800-512-6666) and e-mail ([email protected]). According to the entity, these communication channels are “independent, confidential and impartial”, they operate 24 hours a day and can be used by internal or external audiences.
During the Tokyo Olympics, which will begin on July 23rd, a specific channel was created for the Brazilian mission, with other contacts: 0800 600 0197, (31) 98947-7889 (Whatsapp) and www.ouvidordigital.com.br/cob.
Source: Felipe Rosa Mendes, O Estado de S.Paulo
