Swim Coaches Associations Questions FINA’s response to IOC Audit

Thomas Bach, the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has called for the various Olympic sport federations to be more transparent. FINA, the federation that governs aquatic sports responded with the following press release. In response to the FINA press release, the American and World Swimming Coaches Association offered a sharp reply (See Below) as to the level of transparency FINA has offered in the past and to the depth of any future audit. This all comes down as part of an ongoing push for more FINA accountability.

	FINA PRESS RELEASE 29/2015


	Lausanne (SUI), April 17, 2015

> All FINA Press Releases on www.fina.org

Fina answer to IOC President’s call for transparency

Lausanne (SUI), April 17, 2015– In answer to the IOC President Thomas Bach and Agenda 2020’s call for transparency, FINA, one of the most important stakeholders of the Olympic Programme states that the President, the Honorary Secretary, the Honorary Treasurer and the Bureau Members do not receive any kind of indemnity. They are considered volunteers and do not receive a salary. Until 31st December 2014 they received 300.- USD per diem for the days of travel for FINA business and from 1st January 2015, 400.- USD per diem. The travel expenses are covered in business class.The FINA Office employs 32 persons, including 11 part-time positions (Organisational chart available on the FINA website).Furthermore, considering good governance, transparency, accountability, responsibility and fairness, the FINA Executive and Vice Presidents, at the meeting held in Lausanne, propose to the FINA Bureau to nominate a Chief Internal Audit Officer as a first step.FINA’s Financial Report will continue to be audited in accordance with the Swiss Audit Standards and the FINA Constitution. The audit will be conducted by an external auditor: PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) meeting the legal requirements on licensing according to the Auditor Oversight Act (AOA) and independency.In accordance with the FINA Constitution, the yearly Financial Report is presented to the FINA Bureau for approval and the four (4) year financial statement shall be submitted to the FINA General Congress for approval.

Fédération Internationale de Natation (FINA)The Fédération Internationale de Natation, founded in 1908, is the governing body for aquatics worldwide. FINA’s five discipline Swimming, Open Water Swimming, Diving, Water Polo and Synchronised Swimming – are all included in the Olympic programme. High Diving made its first appearance in FINA events at the 2013 FINA World Championships. FINA counts 208 affiliated National Federations on the five continents and has its headquarters in Lausanne (SUI).

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THIS EMAIL WAS SENT FROM THE FINA COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT

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American and World Swimming Coaches Association Response

Friends –

The attached press release from FINA is close to insulting the intelligence of those who receive it.

IOC President Thomas Bach has been copied on all of the papers concerning international concerns with FINA and the Call for a complete external audit of governance, finance and operations by Coach Bill Sweetenham of Australia and supported by President George Block of the World Swimming Coaches Association and thousands of international coaches and supported by knowledgeable swimming media, among others.

President Bach two days ago announced that the IOC itself would install both INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL AUDITS.

Then this missive from FINA. In typical fashion, FINA refuses to interact and correspond with its real stakeholders, but issues “responses” within the arrogantly named “Olympic Family” as its way of playing “cover it’s butt”. Cowardice in refusing direct discussion is NOT productive. We All Deserve Better.

Several things should be pointed out: First, The inclusion of the respected firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers is meant to tell us that all is well…..but assumes that we do not understand that an auditor only does the work requested by the organization, so is in point of fact, an audit of only what the organizations ASKS to be audited, And OMITS anything else not requested. The quadrennial audit provided by FINA in 2013 (the latest such) is a child-ready document that actually raises more questions than it answers, and deliberately obscures both sources of income and extent and real distribution of expense. It may meet “Swiss Standards” but Swiss Audit Standards are both malleable and inadequate to any real understanding of income and expense for an organization of this level of resource and supposed public trust.

Only a truly external audit conducted at the request of an independent and knowledgeable group of experts can provide adequate financial transparency. So far, we are many miles from that occuring.

Second, the lead paragraph purports to describe “expenses” and per diem to members of the Executive and Bureau. Those amounts are shocking when you realise the number and length of “trips” taken by those individuals. Some are receiving more than $50K a year in “per diem” when their housing and many meals are already taken care of OUTSIDE of the per diem. AND, as anyone who has ever dealt with FINA knows, the “per diem” is paid in CASH, notoriously close to impossible to track or account for. Independent reports indicate that the reported amounts have, in many cases, been wildly exceeded compared to what is reported. (which is itself, absurdly high.)

This information, FAR FROM IMPROVING TRANSPARENCY, simply highlights the real need for OUTSIDE, INDEPENDENT AUDIT requisitioned by people positioned to ask the hard questions of an organization riding on the backs of athletes, yet returning tiny fractions of the money so earned, to those athletes.

FINA – WE ALL DESERVE BETTER!

John Leonard
Executive Director, American and World Swimming Coaches Association

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