On 18 and 19 April, a team of Council of Europe experts carried out a support and follow-up visit to Helsinki to further the implementation of the European Sports Charter (ESC) within Finnish legislation and policies. The ESC is the Council of Europe standard which lays down the basic principles for national sports policies, allowing governments to support and provide opportunities for the practice of sport for all under well-defined conditions.

The team met with the key stakeholders playing an active role in the implementation of a values-based sport in Finland, including Sandra Bergqvist, Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity, Esko Ranto, Director General of the Ministry of Education and Culture, and Tiina Kivisaari, Director of the Sports Division of the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity, as well as representatives from the sports movement including the Olympic and Paralympic Committees, non-organised sport, athletes, the media and others.

This visit is part of the mandate of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) in supporting the implementation of the ESC among its member states.

The team consisted of Kaarel Nestor (Estonia), member of the EPAS Governing Board, Diana Santos (Portugal), Hugh Torrance (EGLSF), member of the EPAS Consultative Committee, and two members of the Secretariat.

The findings, recommendations and good practices identified during the visit will be gathered in a report to be transmitted to the Finnish authorities for the implementation of its tailored recommendations. The adopted report will be made available to the public in 2024 on our website.