The Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) has received the Special Jury Prize at the Peace and Sport Awards, with the award bestowed during a ceremony in Monaco on November 30th.
‘The awards ceremony was held at the end of the 13th Peace and Sport International Forum, which brings together representatives from governments, the international sports movement, international organisations, civil society and the private sector who are involved in actions supporting peace through sport.’
The UCI received the Special Jury Prize for its actions to support female cyclists from Afghanistan by helping evacuate them from the country following the Taliban take-over in 2021, welcoming athletes to its headquarters in Aigle (Switzerland) and organising the women’s national championships on Swiss territory.
In 2021, several evacuation operations led by the UCI and its partners enabled 165 Afghan citizens to leave their country with the support of different actors including NGO IsraAID, various governments, the Asian Cycling Confederation, and Sylvan Adams, owner of UCI WorldTeam Israel-Premier Tech.
These Afghans, in particular the female cyclists, had been in increasing danger since the Taliban overtook the Afghan capital of Kabul in August 2021.
While some of the athletes were welcomed at the UCI World Cycling Centre (WCC) in Aigle – the UCI’s training and education centre which also houses the UCI headquarters – others were hosted in different countries throughout Europe, in Canada and in Singapore.
On October 23, this year, 50 of these refugees were united for the Women’s Road Championships of Afghanistan, held in Aigle and jointly organised by the UCI WCC, the Afghan Cycling Federation, the organising committee of the Tour du Pays de Vaud and the Commune of Aigle.
After receiving the award in Monaco, UCI President David Lappartient said “It is an honour to have our work recognised by Peace and Sport. The evacuation of members of the Afghan cycling family was possible thanks to the actions and commitment of many people and organisations, and I thank them all.
“It was incredibly moving to watch these Afghan women compete in their National Championships that started and finished at our UCI World Cycling Centre. The week the athletes all spent together at the centre to prepare for this race was full of emotions and a true demonstration of the role sport can play in bringing people together and helping to heal wounds in troubled times.”
Joël Bouzou, President and Founder of Peace and Sport, said “The Special Jury Prize of the 2022 Peace and Sport Awards is in recognition of the UCI’s commitment to solidarity and, in particular, its support for the Afghan cycling family.
“The UCI deployed a great deal of diplomacy to evacuate athletes, particularly female athletes, artists, journalists, human rights activists and leaders of sports bodies after the Taliban took over Kabul.
“At the Afghan Women’s Road Championships in Aigle, the evacuated Afghan athletes came together for the first time since leaving their country. In line with the values of the Olympic movement, the UCI has put sport at the service of promoting peaceful, inclusive societies that respect human dignity.”
