Vienna (OTS) - At yesterday’s meeting in the context of the EU Presidency in the Vienna Hofburg, State Secretary Karl Schweitzer identified a number of priorities in the sports sector. The core theme for 2006 will be "Sport and the Economy". Particular attention will be devoted to the health industry, major sporting events, tourism, sport in the light of the demographic trend and sport as a job driver. "The importance of sports to the overall economy is unfortunately all too often underestimated. Our objective must be to translate national experience into a form that can be used at European level", Schweitzer said. “We must develop scientific statistics on sports at European level and create standard economic statistics and documentation pools”, the State Secretary said.
During its Presidency, Austria will also examine the process of ratification of the UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport in the EU Member States and harmonisation of the anti-doping rules. Another important topic is the Commission’s proposed EU Services Directive. It must not "jeopardise Austria’s gambling monopoly, which constitutes the basis for funding organised sports”, Schweitzer said.
Another topic for Austria will be the results of the European Commission study on the "Situation in Europe as regards the education of young sportsmen and sportswomen and their return to education and/or employment once their sporting careers have ended".
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