More than 500 sports personalities, politicians, academics, and leaders from the private sector and civil society gathered over three days to discuss the ability of sport to build sustainable peace and train agents for change, committed to act for a better, more just and more united world.

The 2016 Peace and Sport Forum was held in Monaco 23-25 November. As in 2015, the first major event to mark this occasion was the Peace Walk, which started from the Monte-Carlo Terrasses de l’Opéra.

In the presence of HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco, many Champions for Peace including Dan Luger, Paula Radcliffe, Marc Raquil, Helena Sukova, Pernilla Wiberg, Surya Bonaly, Philippe Gilbert, Tatiana Golovin, Imanol Harinordoquy, Wilson Kipketer, Yelena Isinbaeva and Tegla Loroupe, plus many other dignitaries from the worlds of sport and politics, such as Pal Schmitt and Nobel Peace prize-winners, joined together in a symbolic message of peace just before the official opening of the forum.

“This year’s Forum takes place in a global context where peace seems in decline: widespread violence and extremist acts threaten the stability of our societies at all levels, and the most vulnerable are often the hardest hit” -Joel Bouzou, President of Peace and Sport, explained.

Five themes were at the heart of debates: Sport Diplomacy, Sport Legacy, Gender Equity in Sport, Social Integration of Refugees and Peace through Sport in the Digital Age.

This year’s Peace and Sport Awards – created in 2008 to recognise organisations and individuals who make an “outstanding contribution to peace, dialogue and social stability in the world through sport” – included: the World Taekwondo Federation and the International Table Tennis Federation (Federations of the Year); Flavio Canto, the founder of a group of judo training centres in the poorer communities of Rio de Janeiro (Champion of the year); the International Academy of Sports Science and Technology (Special Jury Prize).