Jamaica should actively pursue sports diplomacy
Published:Tuesday | April 2, 2024 | 12:07 AM
THE EDITOR, Madam:
The recently held ISSA/GraceKennedy Boys and Girls’ Athletics Championships (Champs) was a huge success. In fact, this annual athletic display has been attracting various teams from some of our Caribbean neighbours. Many of the student athletes who gained success at Champs will be future Olympians.
However, Champs is not all about winning. The yearly event is a part of Brand Jamaica and should be viewed as a vehicle for the promotion of sports diplomacy (SD). In particular, SD has proved to boost national branding, attractiveness and global reputation. For example, China’s approach regarding sanitising its image as hosts of the 2008 Olympic Games. More recently, China adopted “The medium and long-term development plan for Chinese football (2016–2050)”, which links SD to the notion and practice of national branding and economic attractiveness. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is another example of a country that has been utilising SD to rebrand its image. Over the years, the image of Saudi Arabia was tarnished, given its poor human-rights record as well as their involvement in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Saudi Arabia has been investing heavily in global sports, from football to Formula 1 racing. Interestingly, in late 2022, Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr shocked the football community.
Recently, the European Union ministers for sport concluded that sport diplomacy can be understood as the use of sport as a means to influence diplomatic, intercultural, social, economic and political relations. It is an inseparable part of public diplomacy, which is a long-term process of communication with the public and organisations with aims such as heightening the attractiveness and image of a country, region or city, and influence decision-making on policy areas. It helps to achieve foreign-policy goals in a way that is visible and comprehensible for the general. Jamaica already has a cultural global presence and rightly earned. Nevertheless, much more can and should be done regarding how, as a society, we can leverage our sporting prowess to influence global diplomatic, intercultural, social, economic and political relations. In keeping with Vision 2030, Jamaica aims to be that country of choice. Jamaica’s development plan embodies a process for the realisation of a collective vision, culminated in the statement: “Jamaica, the place of choice to live, work, raise families and do business.”
Sports have the power to transcend borders and cultures and unite people from different backgrounds and ideologies. Jamaica now needs to re-examine how sports can be used as a platform for dialogue and cooperation as our athletes continue to serve as cultural ambassadors.
WAYNE CAMPBELL