Italian magistrate Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini (main image) is the new independent Chair of Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA).
The election was carried out yesterday during an extraordinary meeting of the SIGA Council, and its results will be submitted for ratification by SIGA Members at the General Assembly scheduled on March 2.
Polcini succeeded Franco Frattini – who passed away on Dec 24, 2022 – as the independent and non-executive SIGA chair until 2025, when the current term, which began in 2021, expires.
“As SIGA chair, and with the SIGA global chief executive officer Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros’ leadership, I wish to support sports and the wider industry in mitigating corruption risks, and promoting ethical values, especially among the youth,” said Polcini.
“Sports is a fundamental driver for both economic growth and social inclusion, supporting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and constituting the core of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
“In addition, sports is a multi-billion-dollar industry with intricate ties to public and private interests. The increasing prevalence of corruption in professional and amateur sports has inspired several multilateral initiatives at the policy level.”
He added that 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,” he added.
Polcini has been a public prosecutor for almost 20 years in the Court of Appeal of the Naples district in Italy. In October 2014, he became the legal advisor to Italy’s Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ministry.
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.
The SIGA new chair has also been a part of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Working Group on Bribery since 2015, and is an expert and delegate with the United Nations’ Anti-Corruption Convention (UNCAC) since 2016.
Among many other relevant experiences, Polcini 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.
“Polcini has had a highly distinguished international career, dedicated to seeking justice, upholding the rule of law and promoting integrity and human rights,” said de Medeiros.
“He is 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.
“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.”
Twentytwo13 is SIGA’s sole media partner from Asia.
SIGA Council line-up
Chair
Giovanni Tartaglia Polcini (Independent)
Vice-chairs
Alison Giordano, Global Business (Mastercard)
Densign White, Sport (International Mixed Martial Arts Federation)
Mohammed Hanzab, Civil Society (International Centre for Sport Security)
Ex-Officio
Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros (SIGA global CEO)
Taylor Green (SIGA Youth Council chair)
Co-opted
Emine Bozkurt, Haley Price, Karin Korb, Kate Beavan
