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STORY: UN / SPORT DEVELOPMENT PEACE
TRT: 02:23
SOURCE: UNIFEED
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGES: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 01 APRIL 2026, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, exterior United Nations Headquarters
01 APRIL 2026, NEW YORK CITY
2. Wide shot, conference room
3. Med shot, Qatari Ambassador Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani speaking
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani, Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Qatar:
“For us in the state of Qatar, sport is a transformative driver of human development and social progress. We firmly believe in the power of advancing, sustainable development, promoting peace and delivering lasting social change. Our approach to hosting major international sporting events, reflects that vision. We see these, mega sports events not only as a platform for athletic excellence, but as well as an opportunity to generate meaningful human and social legacies, promoting sustainability and strengthening international understanding.”
5. Wide shot, dais
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Sima Sami Bahous, Executive Director, UN Women:
“Sport remains one of humanity's most universal languages, a space where dignity can be restored, belonging can be built, and possibility can be imagined. Its power is not merely symbolic, it is structural. Over the past years, we have seen compelling evidence of sport's transformative potential. The Paris Olympics in 2024, which I was honoured to attend, were the first gender parity Olympics in history. The Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games featured 47 percent women athletes, with nearly half of all events dedicated to women. Progress that would have been almost unthinkable just one generation ago.”
7. Wide shot, conference room
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Sima Sami Bahous, Executive Director, UN Women:
“Sport has the power to bring people together across divides, fostering dialogue, trust, and mutual respect, even in the most fragile contexts. Sport is also a powerful driver of peace. Indeed, the Olympic truce reflects the spirit of sports as a unifying force. When made inclusive and accessible, sports become a strong tool for building social cohesion, empowering communities, creating shared spaces where all women and girls can thrive in peace.”
9. Wide shot, conference room
Marking the 2026 International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP), the Head of UN Women today (1 Apr) said, “when made inclusive and accessible, sports become a strong tool for building social cohesion, empowering communities, creating shared spaces where all women and girls can thrive in peace.”
This year’s theme “Sport: Building Bridges, Breaking Barriers,” underscores sport’s unique capacity to foster connection, inclusion, and peace in an increasingly fragmented world.
At the opening of an event at UN Headquarters to mark the Day, Qatari Ambassador Alya Ahmed bin Saif Al-Thani said, “sport is a transformative driver of human development and social progress,” adding that the State of Qatar believes in “the power of advancing, sustainable development, promoting peace and delivering lasting social change” through sports.
Al-Thani said, “our approach to hosting major international sporting events, reflects that vision. We see these, mega sports events not only as a platform for athletic excellence, but as well as an opportunity to generate meaningful human and social legacies, promoting sustainability and strengthening international understanding.”
Bahous for her part said, “sport remains one of humanity's most universal languages, a space where dignity can be restored, belonging can be built, and possibility can be imagined.”
She said, “over the past years, we have seen compelling evidence of sport's transformative potential. The Paris Olympics in 2024, which I was honoured to attend, were the first gender parity Olympics in history. The Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games featured 47 percent women athletes, with nearly half of all events dedicated to women. Progress that would have been almost unthinkable just one generation ago.”
The UN Women Executive Director said, “sport has the power to bring people together across divides, fostering dialogue, trust and mutual respect, even in the most fragile contexts” and is also “a powerful driver of peace.”
Today’s event was organised by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), in collaboration with the Permanent Missions of the Principality of Monaco and the State of Qatar to the United Nations (Co-Chairs of the Group of Friends of Sport for Development and Peace), together with Peace and Sport, the Department of Global Communications, and UN Women.
Every year, the IDSDP is celebrated to highlight the transformative power of sport in driving social change, advancing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and bringing together people and communities from around the world.
