Global Athlete

Re-release: Athlete Power and Representation in Professional Sports with Matt Graham and Paulina Tomczyk

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This is a re-release of our interview with Matthew Graham and Paulina Tomczyk, originally published within GA Podcast EP04.

Athletes must have a voice when it comes to athlete rights and players associations provide the opportunity for their voices to be heard and supported. Noah welcomes Matt Graham and Paulina Tomczyk to discuss what players associations are and why they’re so necessary in today’s world of sport.

In this episode, we talk about…

  • What a player association is and examples of players associations
  • The main mission of player associations when it comes to athlete representation and accountability
  • Why new player associations and unions receive backlash and often struggle
  • Common issues for athletes with amateur status
  • How just cause and culture can influence the formation of player organizations
  • How large players organizations operate and support athletes
  • Revenue models for both large and small players associations
  • Why EU Athletes and other umbrella organizations exist
  • World Players Association and how unions benefit from this group
  • The relationship between World Players Association and the IOC
  • Why it’s possible for smaller sports to have strong players associations 

    • Memorable Quotes:

    • “When the players realize as a group they enjoy considerably more power than they have as individuals, they’re actually in a strong position to negotiate the terms and conditions of their work and they’re broader livelihoods.” 

    Guest Bios:

    Australian freestyle skier Matt Graham is the Director of Legal and Player Relations for the World Players Association.

    Paulina Tomczyk is the General Secretary of EU Athletes, the European federation of player unions and athlete associations, and is also an Executive Committee Member of World Players Association.

    Links to resources:

    EU Athletes

    World Players Association

    IOC

    The Cyclists Alliance

    Follow World Players Association on Twitter @WorldPlayersUtd, EU Athletes @EUAthletes, Paulina @PauTomczyk and follow Global Athlete @GlobalAthleteHQ. Get in touch at [email protected] and join the movement at globalathlete.org.

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