Slovenian Swimmer to Receive Act of Fair Play Award

Ljubljana, 22 October

The International Committee for Fair Play will award Slovenian swimmer Emil Tahirovic and his coach Roni Pikec with the "Act of Fair Play" award at the international level at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris on 7 December.

The pair last year pointed to irregularities in the breaststroke style of Greek swimmer Romanos Alifantis at a swimming meeting in Athens. Tahirovic then used the same style and broke the Slovenian record in 50m breaststroke event, which was later annulled at the swimmer's own initiative. The awards conferred by the International Committee for Fair Play are divided into three categories - act of fair play, sports career and the promotion of fair play. They have been conferred since 1963.
The committee, which divides the awards into trophies and diplomas, will hand out to Tahirovic and Pikec a high-ranking diploma.
"The diploma is a confirmation that we did the right thing. I always believed that the good always wins and that doing the right thing eventually pays sevenfold." said Pikec. "Unfortunately, it seems that we are not going to make it to the ceremony, as we have on 8 December an extremely important race in Eindhoven, in which my swimmers are chasing the norm for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing", said Pikec.
Tahirovic, who is at the moment preparing for the Olympics in Spain's Sierra Nevada, is very happy with the award: "I am very proud of the award. I hope that we will make it to Paris as it is an event one remembers for the lifetime."
The Institute of Fair Play and Tolerance in Sport, in cooperation with the Slovenian Olympic Academy and the Association of Sport Journalist, meanwhile awarded Tahirovic in May 2006 for the same act of fair play.
A similar award was conferred two years ago on Slovenian speedway rider Matej Zagar.

Slovenian Swimmer to Receive Act of Fair Play Award

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