Counselor Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini, member of the Scientific Committee of Eurispes, elected Chair of SIGA
Magistrate and legal advisor Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini, member of the Scientific Committee of Eurispes, is the new independent Chair of SIGA – Sport Integrity Global Alliance.
The election took place on February 23rd, by unanimity and acclamation, at an extraordinary meeting of the SIGA Council, and will be submitted to ratification by the SIGA Members at the General Assembly scheduled for March 2nd.
Counselor Polcini succeeds to Hon. Franco Frattini, who passed away on 24 December 2022, as the independent and non-executive Chair of SIGA until 2025, when the current term, that began in 2021, will expire.
Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini, member of the Scientific Committee of Eurispes, has been Public Prosecutor for almost twenty years in the Court of Appeal of Naples district. In October 2014, he became Legal Advisor to Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. He is currently acting as coordinator of international anti-corruption activities. As Coordinator of a Task Force of Italian institutions for the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group Presidency, he chaired the group in 2021 and is currently Co-Chairing it under India’s G20 presidency in 2023.
SIGA’s new Chair is also an anti-corruption delegate to the OECD Working Group on Bribery since 2015 and an expert and delegate for the United Nations Anti-Corruption Convention (UNCAC) since 2016. Among many other relevant experiences, he has carried out missions in more than 30 countries and launched a new initiative called’ legal diplomacy’ with the diplomatic officers of the Directorate-General for Globalisation and Global Issues.
Under Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini’s chairmanship, SIGA Council will have the following constitution:
Chair
Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini (Independent)
Vice-Chairs
Alison Giordano, Global Business (Mastercard);
Densign White, Sport (IMMAF)
Mohammed Hanzab, Civil Society (ICSS);
Ex-Officio
Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros (Global CEO, SIGA)
Talyor Green (Chair, SIGA Youth Council)
Co-opted
Emine Bozkurt;
Haley Price;
Karin Korb;
Kate Beavan
Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros, SIGA Global CEO, welcomed Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini to the Council, emphasizing his personal and professional values and close alignment with SIGA’s vision: «Couns. Tartaglia Polcini has had a highly distinguished international career, dedicated to seeking Justice, upholding the Rule of Law and promoting Integrity and Human Rights. He is fully familiar with SIGA and shares our Vision. He has stood side by side with our previous Chair Franco Frattini on many occasions, with whom he worked for many years as one of his closest and most trusted experienced advisors. Indeed, he has been a committed supporter of SIGA since our inception and has been actively engaged in pursuing our global reform agenda. As Chair of the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group, he led the most significant policy advancement in recent years, which SIGA was invited to contribute and became fully involved during his tenure (and now beyond). We all agree that his personal qualities, professional credentials and global stature, aligned with his passion for Sport Integrity, make him the ideal independent Chair of SIGA».
Following his election as Chair of SIGA, Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini stated: «Following the insight of President Franco Frattini, I accept the honour to serve as Independent Chair of SIGA, a lighthouse of integrity in sport at the global level. Therefore, as Chair and with the SIGA Global CEO Dr Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros’ leadership, I wish to support Sport and the wider industry in mitigating corruption risks and promoting ethical values, especially among the youth. Sport is a fundamental driver for both economic growth and social inclusion, supporting the UN Sustainable Development Goals and constituting the core of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In addition, sport is a multi-billion-dollar industry with intricate ties to public and private interests. The increasing relevance of corruption in professional and amateur sports has inspired several multilateral initiatives at the policy level. The G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group, under the Italian Presidency in 2021, adopted a set of High-level Principles on the topic, followed by the accountability report of 2022 promoted by the Indonesian presidency. We all are aware of the need to tackle with growing international efforts the threat that corruption poses to the integrity of sport, and the key role SIGA plays in this space. We will increase efforts to strengthen both the legal and policy framework affecting corruption in sport».
