World Athletics Address Athletes’ Concerns About Climate Change

November 11, 2022 

International sports federation, World Athletics, has launched "Champions for a Better World" to support its efforts in campaigning for sustainability within the sport. Announced during the current UN Climate Change Conference in Egypt (COP27), the program is designed to encourage athletes to take a more active role in addressing environmental concerns as part of the organization's Athletics for a Better World initiative. 

A World Athletics survey of 737 athletes showed that more than 76% are seriously concerned by climate change and more than 66% feel directly impacted by its effects. Around 90% of athletes expressed that athletics should help build a more sustainable future and 77% are willing to change their lifestyle to reduce the impact of their activities on the environment. 

"It's clear that an overwhelming majority of our athletes are very concerned about the impacts that climate change is having on their lives and on our sport. It's critical for us to act on those concerns, to put practical applications in place where we can, and to drive the sport forward with the advocacy and the high-profile voices that athletes can bring," said Sebastian Coe, World Athletics President. 

The initiative announced its first nine Champions – representing six continental areas – that will lend their voices to the program's efforts to advocate for more sustainable practices across athletics. The nine ambassadors come from Brazil, Australia, the US, the Philippines, Burkina Faso, Italy, Switzerland, New Zealand and Nigeria, all competing in different athletic disciplines.

The inaugural Champions for a Better World include:

• Tobi Amusan, Nigeria – 100m hurdles – world record holder, 2022 world champion
• Kelsey-Lee Barber, Australia – javelin – 2019 and 2022 world champion
• Ajla Del Ponte, Switzerland – sprints – 2021 European indoor 60m champion, 2022 Olympic 100m finalist
• Alison Dos Santos, Brazil – 400m hurdles – 2022 world champion, 2021 Olympic bronze medallist
• Sam Mattis, USA – discus – 2021 Olympic and 2022 World Championships finalist
• Eliza McCartney, New Zealand – pole vault – 2016 Olympic bronze medallist
• Ernest John Obiena, Philippines – pole vault – 2022 world bronze medallist
• Elena Vallortigara, Italy – high jump – 2022 world bronze medallist
• Hugues Fabrice Zango, Burkina Faso – triple jump – world indoor record-holder, 2022 world silver medallist, 2021 Olympic bronze medallist

“As athletes, we have the important mission of raising awareness about the need to take care of the environment, both at social and economic levels. We [athletes] nowadays have a precious platform to speak to the people who follow the sport and raise awareness,” said Alison Dos Santos.

“We can see that climate change is already affecting sport. We have seen extreme temperatures, extreme storm events, air pollution. All of these things are very obvious in athletics, that you can see the change and how it’s affecting the training and competition of athletes. So, it's critical for us to step up and have our voices heard and say what we think needs to be done and be part of the solutions,” said Eliza McCartney.

The new program aligns with the World Athletics Sustainability Strategy which aims to make the organization carbon-neutral by 2030. The strategy also outlines a pathway for member federations and licensed competitions to achieve net zero emissions by 2040, and provides support for athletes to have their voices heard in this space. 

This endeavor follows a string of efforts by World Athletics on their climate action journey. Earlier this year, it launched the Every Breath Counts campaign to encourage people around the world to sign a Declaration for Clean Air. In the survey, more than 70% of athletes expressed their concerns about air pollution.