The iconic Olympic Museum of Lausanne witnessed a great moment for lacrosse as it marked its place within the recently held international forum "Hosts & Federations Summit". For four days, this event brought together national and international sports federations, event host-cities and numerous sports industry giants.
The Summit addressed a number of issues critical to the global development of sports. Among the topics discussed were the growth of women's sports, the vision and strategy for the next Olympic Games, sponsorship, and sustainability in sporting events.
For the first time, lacrosse played a leading role in this important industry event. FIBA 3x3's director of competitions and other industry professionals were joined by our own Santiago de la Morena, Deputy Director of AEL on an outstanding panel titled “Urban and Emerging Sports."
During his speech, Santiago highlighted the work that is being carried out to increase the awareness of lacrosse, as well as increase overall participation in Europe. He emphasized the efforts of all nations to get the sport to take root among youth players and stressed the importance of encouraging the participation of women both on the field and in management positions.
The panel concluded with a look to the future, highlighting the avenues and efforts for lacrosse to become part of the Olympic program. The possible inclusion of lacrosse in the Olympic Games would represent a significant milestone for our sport.
The Spanish Lacrosse Association (AEL) thanks Dennis Mills, CEO of Major Events International for giving us this opportunity to share the present and future of lacrosse in such an important international forum such as the "Hosts & Federations Summit."
Undoubtedly, our participation in the forum has been a very important experience to promote the spirit of the motto "Grow the Game," and demonstrates that lacrosse is gaining worldwide recognition and acceptance.