Patrick Hickey, the EOC’s friendly President, was in Turkey recently. The purpose of his visit was to receive an Honorary Doctorate from Pamukkale University, a modern university in southern Turkey, in recognition of his services to Olympism and world sport. During his three-day stay, we both commented on the fact that the EOC now has forty-nine members, the latest country to join being Montenegro. And it is on this subject – that of membership – that I would like to say something in this issue of ‘Play Fair’ in the light of my fourteen years’ experience as Vice President of the EFPM.
The European Fair Play Movement was set up as an amateur organisation under the auspices of the EOC at a meeting held at FIFA House in Zurich in 1994, and its members were the Fair Play Councils attached to the National Olympic Committees of various European countries, as well as Fair Play clubs. The goal of our movement was clearly stated from the very outset: the elimination of prejudice and violence from European sport. We wished to bequeathe to our children the ideal of fairness, aiming to extend this concept beyond the con- fines of sport to encompass every area of life. Thanks to the altruism of its members and to their untiring efforts, the EFPM is now celebrating fourteen years of existence.

Now that Montenegro, the latest European country to achieve independence, has joined us, the number of EFPM member countries has swelled to forty-one. There are, however, eight European countries who, in spite of the fact that their athletes have won deserved fame in the annals of world sport both for their sporting achievements and for their sportsmanlike behaviour, have still not joined us.
This is even more surprising in view of the fact that some of these countries have actually hosted the Olympic Games. So why are we still waiting for Great Britain, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Monaco, Liechtenstein and San Marino to become members of the EFPM? There are people from all these countries who are doing valuable and productive work at the CIFP, and who would like nothing more than to have a Fair Play organization set up in their own countries either within the framework of their National Olympic Committees or as a club. However, yet another year has gone by without any concrete steps being taken towards this end.

Fair Play is one of the most fundamental elements in sport.
We believe that as Europe is the place where the idea for the Olympics was first conceived and where the Games were first held, it would be highly appropriate for all the countries on this continent to be members of the European Fair Play Movement. So I will conclude with the wish that these remaining eight countries may take my words as a renewed invitation to join our ranks and that we may see the day when the EFPM, like the EOC, has forty-nine members.

Erdoğan Arıpınar  
Vice President, EFPM