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Olympic legend Pernilla Wiberg backs #WhiteCard for Peace

1 | 4 | 2015

Four-time Olympian and double Gold Medallist, Pernilla Wiberg, is among the first sports stars to show support for #Whitecard, the mass social media campaign launched by Peace and Sport this week ahead of the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP) on April 6. The WOA Executive Board member is publically backing the campaign and is urging fellow Olympians to follow her lead. 

The WOA has already pledged its full support for #WhiteCard, which aims to mobilise the sporting community ahead of IDSDP 2015, a global event run by UN Member States and other partner organisations promoting the power of sport for social change. The movement encourages people around the world to unite in activities celebrating sport and its values.

Olympians everywhere are being invited to take part in the #WhiteCard initiative by taking a photo of themselves holding up a symbolic white card and then posting the snap on Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms with the tagline:

‘Like me, post your #whitecard to Play your Peace on April 6th @peaceandsport #IDSDP2015!’

Pernilla Wiberg, who won Olympic Gold in Alpine Skiing in Albertville 1992 and Lillehammer 1994, said:

“The #WhiteCard campaign is about giving back to sport. It is a small but significant way that we, as athletes and role models, can promote the important part sport plays in our society and encourages those in our communities to get involved and get active.

“Sport is a tool that helps teach respect amongst young people so I would urge everyone to get behind the #WhiteCard campaign and spread the word about IDSDP 2015 and April 6.”

Other high-profile stars to back the campaign so far include 2013 Tour de France winner and Olympic bronze medallist Chris Froome, retired Formula One star David Coulthard, and French rugby legend Serge Betsen.

The WOA is encouraging its 100,000-strong Olympian community around the world to support the campaign which celebrates the role that sport plays in society by encouraging healthier lifestyles, making sport more widely accessible and using sport as a vehicle for development in areas made vulnerable by conflict, poverty and inequality. 

To find out more about the campaign and how to post your #WhiteCard ‘selfie’ please visit www.april6.org