On the day of the much-noticed Super League ruling, the European Court of Justice strengthened the rights of individual athletes in another case and ruled against the World Ice Sports Federation.
On the day of the highly publicized Super League ruling, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) not only weakened the position of UEFA, but also the monopoly of other sports associations. In the proceedings between the World Ice Sports Federation ISU and Olympic speed skating champion Mark Tuitert and the former short tracker Niels Kerstholt (both Netherlands), the ECJ increased the athletes’ freedom.
Tuitert and Kerstholt wanted to take part in the “Icederby” competition in Dubai in May 2014, where the victory and participation bonuses were higher than in world association competitions. The ISU threatened the participants with a lifetime ban and the planned event was canceled. In the legal dispute that followed, the European Commission ruled in favor of the athletes for the first time in 2017. The ISU appealed and lost in the final instance. A ban would contradict the rules of free competition.
Relationship between Competition law and sport
The case is “at the center of the problem of the relationship and interaction between competition law and sport“Writes Advocate General Athanasios Rantos in his final submission in 2022. The judges’ verdict is accordingly”of great, ‘existential’ importance“, said the lawyer.