World Athletics today (22 July) released its inaugural year review of the Athletics for a Better World (ABW) Standard, the system that evaluates, measures and scores an event’s achievement in sustainable delivery.
The ABW Standard consists of 55 action areas that address efforts to minimise an event’s environmental impact and maximise its social and local economic benefits. It was launched in December 2021 and implemented in January 2024, when sustainability reporting through the ABW Standard became an annual or bi-annual requirement for most global elite competitions managed or awarded by World Athletics.
The review examined reports submitted by 102 events from 36 countries across each of World Athletics’ six continental areas, spotlighting best practices, noting trends and identifying strengths and weaknesses in sustainable event delivery. It then presented some next steps to address some of the challenges the review identified.
Click to access report
“While sustainable delivery was already ‘business as usual’ for many events, it was an entirely new delivery component for even more,” said World Athletics President Sebastian Coe. “We knew from experience and discussions with organisers that sustainability planning and reporting does require an allocation of additional time, resources and expertise. And we know that poses organisational challenges across our events, which will need time to change.
“This is why I am both grateful and appreciative of the efforts of these first 102 events from 36 countries that began their sustainability reporting process in 2024. It’s a start our entire sport can be proud of.”
The ABW Standard is a tiered system, with platinum, gold, silver, bronze and recognised event achievement levels. In 2024, 48 events reached one of the achievement levels.
The World Athletics Indoor Championships Glasgow 24 and the Oslo Bislett Games achieved platinum, and the Hypo-Meeting combined events meeting in Götzis, Austria, and the Weltklasse Zurich achieved gold. Four other events reached silver, five bronze and another 35 achieved Recognised Event status.
Some of the key findings:
· 62 events produced sustainability plans, 42 have dedicated sustainability pages on their websites and 42 published post-event sustainability reports
· 48 events worked with local public transport companies to provide free or discounted fares
· 40 incorporated air quality initiatives into their events
· 50 reported ways that their events engaged with, and directly drove added value to, the local community
· 33 events considered zero waste targets in their planning and 40 used catering plans to lower carbon emissions
This initial review will serve as the ABW Standard’s baseline reference. Comprehensive annual reviews will continue to help identify areas where support should be directed and at the same time chart the Standard’s impact on athletics events and in the communities that host them.
More than 9,000,000 people were either participants in or spectators of the 102 events represented in the report, illustrating the reach the sport of athletics has to positively influence the environmental and social impacts of its events.
When fully adopted, the ABW standard will apply to about 500 in-stadium athletics and mass participation road running events, making it the largest sustainability evaluation system in the sport industry.
World Athletics will provide a detailed breakdown and deep dive into the Year 1 Review at a webinar on Tuesday 29 July at 2pm CET. Organisers of four events will join the discussion to share their experiences with the ABW Standard. The guests include:
· Alexandra Giesinger, Meeting Director, Hypo-Meeting Götzis combined events
· Christoffer Hagren, Sustainability Manager, BAUHAUS-Galan Diamond League
· Claire O’Neill, Chief Executive, Moy Park Belfast City Half & Marathon
· Georgie Eyre, Event Services Manager, Sydney Marathon
Register here