MOSCOW, April 29 (RAPSI) — The Government Law-Making Commission has approved an initiative of the Russian Ministry of Sports aimed at combating match-fixing and corruption in sports. 

The bill expands the concept of unlawful influence on the result of an official sports competition. In addition to bribery of athletes, referees and coaches, this term will include the use of insider information and the failure to take measures to prevent conflicts of interest. The bill is aimed at combating corruption in sports: match-fixing, unlawful use of insider information, including for gambling purposes, Chairman of the Board of the Association of Lawyers of Russia Vladimir Gruzdev said.

He clarified that the proposed provisions expand the concept of unlawful influence on the results of official sports competitions: the draft defines the content of "conflict of interest in the field of physical culture and sports" and "insider information in the field of physical culture and sports," the Association Chairman noted.

Gruzdev emphasized that the initiative is designed to put in place a system aimed at countering the manipulation of sports competitions.  

According to the Association Chairman the list of insider information will be determined by sports federations and professional leagues. At the same time, publicly available information, as well as information published in the media, cannot be classified as insider information.

Often, insider information is used to play sweepstakes. But it can also become a way of illegally influencing the result of a match, if, for example, the team is told a tactical plan for the future game prepared by their opponent. Therefore, persons convicted of attempting sports espionage and selling insider information can be held accountable,  Gruzdev summed up.