In his last Cabinet meeting before submitting his resignation, Italian PM Giuseppe Conte has managed to push through legal amendments giving the Italian Olympic Committee the necessary financial and administrative independence as requested by the international body.
In particular, the decree ensures that stadiums that have been used for a long time by Olympic athletes, have been transferred to the Olympic committee (CONI).
Vincenzo Spadafora, Sport Minister, shared his delight at the news, which potentially saves the country’s face in front of what would have been a truly embarrassing situation for the sport-loving nation.
Italy’s participation at this Summer’s Olympic Games could be in danger after the International Olympic Committee strongly reacted to new sports legislation which significantly curtails the independence of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI).
According to the new law, the government would be authorized to reorganize the Italian Olympic Committee, its activities, and its internal organization. CONI’s previous government funding is now to be divided between the Olympic Committee and the newly-formed Sport e Salute company, which is entirely state owned by the Ministry of Economy, that distributes the income from state funds and financing. In practice, this gives the Italian government greater control over how much money goes to CONI and how that money is used.
CONI has historically been primarily funded by the Italian government via a scheme that includes revenues from sports betting, television rights, tickets from footbal matches, and other sports-related ventures. The annual CONI budget has been around 400 million euro, but this year, CONI will receive around only 40 million, while the rest will be funneled through the new entity.
The new law also states that the Italian Olympic Committee’s activities and responsibilities would depend on the government. The new law further indicates the federations that make up the Italian Olympic Committee should abide by the government’s statutes, rather than the Olympic Charter and the International Federation (IF) with which they are affiliated. Lastly, Italy’s government would have specific control over the Italian Olympic Committee’s financial activity.
Giovanni Malagò, president of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI), confirmed reports that if the Italian government does not resolve issues of CONI’s autonomy by Wednesday, that the vote will be in favor of suspending the symbols of Italy from participation in the Olympic Games.
Speaking in front of the Italian senate, Malagò’s pleas did not apparently fall on deaf ears – at least one senator, who voted in favor the reform in 2019, now believes that “the government must work to give a signal to the IOC, we cannot allow the image of Italy to be tarnished.”
