Consulate General of Belgium in Los Angeles’ Post

Perfect time to reflect on what the European Sport Model is all about⬇️ The European Sport Model represents a framework that highlights the distinctive characteristics and principles shaping sports governance in Europe. It serves as a foundational guide for governing sports across the continent, fostering cooperation among national federations and aligning with wider European objectives. Its core principles include solidarity, inclusivity, good governance, fairness, integrity, and sustainability. The model operates in close collaboration with Lex Sportiva, sharing many of the same values and goals, and formalizes its commitments through partnerships with key sports organizations like UEFA. In essence, it acts as an overarching structure that unites and promotes positive values while standing against harmful practices in sport. Nice political initiative ✨

It's an exciting week for those of us working around events with #Paris2024 set to kick off this Friday, the announcement that #Birmingham will host the Invictus Games in 2027 and 10 years today since the opening ceremony of the Glasgow Commonwealth Games. At Spirit of 2012 we are always trying to get under the skin of how events leave a long term legacy in a place, and explore with partners from across sport, arts and culture and communities, how this impact could be maximized. 10 years on from the spectacular opening of the Glasgow 2014 Games we with our partners CCSE UWS, undertook some polling across Scotland to ask about the impact, the results are in - https://lnkd.in/evWJc_Zr We were delighted that the impact is still being felt now by people in Glasgow and across Scotland. At a glance the polling told us that the Games : Increased civic (71%) and national pride (75%). Improved Scotland’s international reputation (75%). Enhanced access to sporting facilities and activities (69%) Increased emphasis on public health and physical activity (76%) Strong support (73%) that the Games enabled Glasgow to host other major sporting events. Generated a lasting impact for the host city (69%) This broadly mirrors polling we undertook 10 years on from #London2012. It shows the power not just of the physical and economic legacy, but the magic and memory, the way events make people feel and connect to their place. It shows that in hosting major sporting events it's not just the sport that's important but the cultural and volunteering elements are critical in delivering that long term legacy.

It doesn’t happen often but for a city of 7.5m this is a fantastic achievement for Hong Kong! It’s the city’s third ever Olympic gold, and second in fencing; Vivian Kong’s name will forever be written in the city’s sports lore with legendary status along with Lee Lai-shan (women’s sailing, Atlanta 1996) and Cheung Ka-Long (men’s fencing Tokyo 2020). It’s also testament to Kong’s “fighting spirit” as she said herself, to bounce back from 6 points down to winning gold against her French opponent in front of a local French crowd that included their country’s own President, Macron, and having suffered two knee injuries earlier this year; the odds could not have been more stacked against her. Similarly, Hong Kong’s mixed table tennis duo, Wong Chung-ting and Doo Hoi-kem, came from 4-0 down in the final round to beat Spain and reach the semi-finals yesterday. Hong Kongers have always loved an underdog and the “fighting spirit”, as shown in so many of the Stephen Chow (Shaolin Soccer, Kung Fu Hustle, Legend of the Dragon - about snooker!), Jackie Chan (Police Story, Project A, Operation Condor) and other iconic Hong Kong movies. And it’s this “fighting spirit” that the city’s advertising strategy should be focusing on to attract trade and tourists, an inspiring theme backed up by decades of movies with the same message and now the increasing body of sporting achievements, not its current widely derided and lamentable “Happy Hong Kong” campaign. I’ve met and encountered so many people in Hong Kong over the years with this “can do” attitude, it’s literally sewn into the city’s fabric. You see it in every strand of society, from the tycoons of this world, the partners of international law firms and big4 firms, the founders of unicorns, to the regular man or woman on the street working hard to provide for their family, the workers at the wet market, as well as the taxi drivers and cardboard ladies who should have long retired. No. One. Gives. Up. There’s still time for Hong Kong Tourism Board to figure this out. I hope they do. https://lnkd.in/gGWTTPdt

When a hug speaks louder than words 🤗 Imagine a country where the King, Crown Prince, Prime Minister, and Minister of Foreign Affairs casually line up to embrace and hug their sports champions. When Aalborg Handball players Mikkel Hansen (retiring) and Niklas Landin casually hugged royalty and leading politicians, they might have displayed Denmark’s greatest asset:  Social Capital. This isn't just a display of national pride -  it's a testament to Denmark's unique culture of trust and equality. In Denmark, trust isn't just a word; it's the foundation of our society. It's what allows parents to leave their babies sleeping in prams outside cafes and why businesses thrive on collaboration. 74 % of Danes say they trust one another – the highest rate in the world. This deep-seated trust creates a flat hierarchy where even those in the highest offices are approachable and connected to the people. 📽Tv2, Magnus Stig Christensen

Are you ready for the greatest sporting event on Earth??? Read my Olympic guide and you will be!!!! Learn about the history of the modern Olympics, their importance for politics, and the storylines to watch this year! You can also find team summaries for Brazil, Great Britain, and the United States! #Olympics #Paris2024 #olympics2024 #history #Politics

We are lucky. 😘 Lucky to live in the world's largest multicultural democratic haven – Europe. Composed of imperfect democracies but far more perfect than many other regimes on the planet. What we have just experienced in France during these Olympic Games has shown us how the values that guide us, such as freedom, equality, and fraternity, are also values that sports magnify. Did you know? The 27 countries of the European Union, when we add up their medals, are comfortably ahead in terms of gold medals: 97! (vs. 40 USA and 40 China), silver medals: 95! (vs. 44 USA and 27 China), and the total number of medals won: 309!!! (vs. 126 USA and 91 China). It is easy to understand through this observation that sporting development, and therefore indirectly general well-being, is undoubtedly intimately linked to our multi-democratic situation. As the 2024 Olympics come to an end, while waiting for the 2024 Paris Olympics, several positive feelings dominate my state of mind, but above all, I am aware of my luck. I am so proud to be French, but especially proud to be European. Vive l’Europe. https://lnkd.in/ejUFBj7c

The article is interesting because it highlights that the changes that the Paris City Council wants to promote are on the right track (according to our current paradigm) and that the Olympics have given it the excuse to promote them politically. But it precisely fails to answer the question it asks, because it focuses on the City Hall of Paris under whose jurisdiction only the center of the metropolis is... They do not talk about the large facilities on the periphery (stade de France, Olympic village, suburban Grand Paris Express...). These must be addressed from the regional scale (Ile de France region). My opinion is that it is being done well because it reuses a lot that already exists and the objective is to reinforce policies that were already planned (transport, regional integration, inequality in banlieus, etc.) compared to the classic logic of the Olympic Games of creating external facilities. process. It will be necessary to see after the fact if they manage to activate the peripheral equipment and if the economic management has been right. https://t.co/Nnvrq3i3fU

🥇🇫🇷In close to 50 days, the 2024 Olympics in Paris are set to commence. In our most recent article, first-years Céleste and Till, describe the city as caught “between excitement and concerns.” Read the article to learn more about Paris’s Olympic prep, gaining insight into the work done by the French government and International Olympic Committee (IOC) to ready the city for this momentous occasion, but also about the harsh criticisms they face due to controversial decision-making. Check it out: https://lnkd.in/gN5kDNsh #EuropeanWaves #ParisOlympics2024

#FIFAWorldCup | The Hudson County Latin American Chamber of Commerce (HCLACC), represented by its President Heidi Castrillon, participated in the important event “Soccer World Cup 2026 in Mid-Atlantic Region”, held at the headquarters of the Hogan Lovells law firm in Philadelphia, by the Mid-Atlantic - Eurasia Business Council (MAEBC/MARBC), trade organization chaired by Val Kogan. At the meeting, prominent speakers discussed the great economic and commercial impact that the participation of Philadelphia and New York/New Jersey as host cities of the FIFA World Cup 2026™ - Canada, Mexico and the United States will have, a fact that will benefit the hospitality industry and nearly all other sectors of business in the area. These cities will host no less than fourteen World Cup matches, including the final, scheduled for July 19, 2026 at MetLife Stadium, located in #EastRutherford, an inner ring suburb of #NewYorkCity. Since 1994, the Mid-Atlantic - Eurasia Business Council (MAEBC/MARBC) has worked to foster business relations between Eurasia/Russia and the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region. A major focus of MAEBC/MARBC's efforts in recent years has been the establishment of the #MidAtlantic region as a leading partner for Eurasian/Russian-American innovation technology and entrepreneurship cooperation. #Business #ChamberofCommerce #FWC2026 #Hospitality #NewJersey #NewYork #NYNJ26 #Philadelphia #Soccer #Sports #Technology #Tourism #WeAre26 #WeAreNYNJ

Exploring the Impact of Hosting International Sporting Events: With the United States setting record-breaking achievements in recent Olympics and gearing up to host the Olympics in 2028 and the World Cup in 2026, this article delves into the significance and impact of such events on a global scale.