PFA and Sport Integrity Australia

What is sport integrity?

Sport is an Australian way of life. It brings people together, transcends differences in language, ability, culture and beliefs, and provides physical, social and economic benefits.

Threats to sports integrity include competition manipulation, doping, and behaviours that impact people’s positive experience of sport, such as discrimination or abuse.

Integrity in sport means that athletes, supporters and fans can participate in and celebrate sport, confident in the knowledge that they are part of a safe, ethical and inclusive environment.

Petanque Federation Australia takes integrity seriously.

All our members and participants have an obligation to protect and maintain the integrity of sport, as well as the health and wellbeing of our athletes. We work closely with Sport Integrity Australia, the national agency established to protect sport against integrity threats. For more information visit the Sport Integrity Australia website.

Petanque Federation Australia takes integrity seriously.

All our members and participants have an obligation to protect and maintain the integrity of sport, as well as the health and wellbeing of our athletes. We work closely with Sport Integrity Australia, the national agency established to protect sport against integrity threats. For more information visit the Sport Integrity Australia website.

Reporting integrity issues

Everyone from athletes, parents, support personnel, administrators and supporters plays a role in protecting the integrity of our sport.

If you see something, say something!

In 2022, Petanque Federation Australia adopted the National Integrity Framework, which provides a suite of policies developed by Sport Integrity Australia, coupled with an independent complaint-handling process. This means from 1 April 2022, concerns, or complaints about alleged integrity breaches of our National Integrity Framework can be reported directly to Sport Integrity Australia through the following methods:

• Completing a formal complaint or reporting a concern through the online form located the Sport Integrity Australia website

• Phoning 1300 027 232

• Completing the ‘Report an Issue’ form in the Sport Integrity App.

Petanque Federation Australia will continue to handle all non-National Integrity Framework-related matters, such as Competition Rules, Selection Policy Disputes, Governance matters etc.

To report a non-NIF matter:

You can find more information about who manages what sport complaints here.

A more detailed flowchart outlining how the complains and reporting process works can be viewed here.

Our integrity rules

We take sports integrity seriously and have the following policies in place:

Member Protection Policy

Complaints Disputes and Discipline Policy 

Child Safeguarding Policy

Improper Use of Drugs and Medicine Policy

Competition Manipulation and Sports Wagering Policy 

Education, resources and awareness

When it comes to sport integrity, it is critical that our athletes and support personnel are aware of their rights and responsibilities. There is a range of tools and resources available to help keep participants informed.

Integrity eLearning

Sport Integrity Australia eLearning offers a number of online courses relating to sport integrity, including doping, match fixing, illicit drugs and ethical decision-making courses. Specific anti-doping courses are also available for coaches, support persons, medical practitioners and parents.

Sport Integrity app

The Sport Integrity app is a one-stop shop for all sport integrity needs, designed with athletes in mind.

The app allows users to check whether their medications are banned in sport, find low-risk supplements to reduce their change of testing positive accidentally, and check whether they need a Therapeutic Use Exemption. The app is also a tool to raise concerns about things like doping, match-fixing, harassment or illicit drug use. It also features further information on eLearning modules, whereabouts and testing information and gives users the opportunity to provide feedback to Sport Integrity Australia.

The app is free and can be downloaded from the Apple and Android app stores.

Prohibited List of substances and methods

The Prohibited List outlines the substances and methods that are prohibited in sport. It is updated annually by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Remember that individual products or brands are not named on the Prohibited List. Athletes should check the status of all medications before they use them on GlobalDRO.

Checking your substances

Global DRO allows users to check whether the most commonly prescribed and over-the-counter medicines in Australia are permitted or prohibited in sport.

If an athlete requires use of a prohibited substance to treat a medical condition, the athlete needs to be aware of the Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) requirements. For more information on a Therapeutic Use Exemptions visit Sport Integrity Australia’s website.

Play by the Rules

Play by the Rules provides information, resources, tools and free online training to administrators, coaches, officials, players, parents and spectators to assist them in preventing and dealing with discrimination, harassment, child safety, inclusion and integrity issues in sport.

Stay up to date on Social media

Keep up to date with all that is happening in sport integrity by following Sport Integrity Australia on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram or listening to On Side, the official podcast of Sport Integrity Australia.

POLICY INFORMATION

Anti-Doping
Anti-doping rules apply to all participants of our sport from elite down to grassroots. All members must be aware of, and have a basic understanding of, their obligations in regard to anti-doping. The Sport Integrity Australia website has a range of information and resources to assist, including:

• information about supplements
• applying for a Therapeutic Use Exemption
• submitting Whereabouts information
• information about athlete testing

The Petanque Australia anti-doping policy is the Australian Anti-Doping Policy, effective 1 January 2021, and can be found here. All members, participants, and non-participants in the sport of darts are bound by these rules.

Improper Use of Drugs and Medicine Policy

The improper use of drugs and medicine in sport, including the use of supplements and the provision by unqualified and unauthorised people are a risk to the health of athlete and the integrity of sport.

To counter these risks, we have put in place an Improper Use of Drugs and Medicine Policy which ensures:

• Medical practitioners working in our sport are accredited and qualified to fulfil their duties
• Medicines are used in appropriate ways
• Safe use of supplements which comply with the World Anti-Doping Code
• Illegal drug use is prohibited in our sport

For more information, check out the Improper Use of Drugs and Medicines Fact Sheet

Click here for information to help 13–17-year-olds to understand the Improper Use of Drugs and Medicines Policy.

Click here to view our Improper Use of Drugs & Medicines Policy.

Competition Manipulation and Sports Wagering Policy
Manipulating sports competitions, commonly known as ‘match-fixing’ is when someone alters a sporting competition to remove the unpredictable nature of the competition to obtain an undue advantage, or benefit.

People are motivated to manipulate competitions for a variety of reasons such as to get a better draw in a round-robin tournament (often referred to as tanking) or to avoid relegation to a lower competition. Another reason people manipulate competitions is to profit through betting markets by underperforming intentionally.

In most Australian states and territories, the manipulation of sporting competitions can result in a criminal conviction and up to ten years in jail. Participants of a sport involved in manipulating competitions will also likely face a long ban from sport. More information can be found on the Sport Integrity Australia website.
For more information, check out the Competition Manipulation and Sports Wagering Fact Sheet

Click here for information to help 13–17-year-olds to understand Competition Manipulation and Sports Wagering Policy.

Click here to view our Competition Manipulation & Sports Wagering Policy.

Safeguarding

Participation in sport should be safe for all. We are committed to ensuring that people in sport, including children, are treated with respect dignity, and are protected from bullying, discrimination, harassment, or abuse.

The Child Safeguarding Policy and Member Protection Policy highlight the important legal and governance responsibilities in relation to child safety and member protection.

For more information on Child Safeguarding, check out the Child Safeguarding Fact Sheet.

Click here for information to help 7–12-year-olds to understand the Child Safeguarding Policy.

Click here for information to help 13–17-year-olds to understand the Child Safeguarding Policy.

Click here to view our Child Safeguarding Policy and South Australian Addendum.

For more information on Member Protection, check out the Member Protection Fact Sheet.

Click here for information to help 7-12-year-olds to understand their rights in sport.

Click here for information to help 13-17-year-olds to understand their rights in sport.

Click here for information to help 13-17-year-olds understand the Member Protection Policy.

Click here to view our Member Protection Policy.

BREACHES OF INTEGRITY POLICIES

All alleged breaches in relation to our National Integrity Framework and associated integrity policies will be managed under the Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy.

Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy
Our Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy sets out the process for resolving complaints arising from a breach of an eligible policy.

Complaints in relation to breaches under the National Integrity Framework will be managed independently by Sport Integrity Australia.

For more information on what a breach under the National Integrity Framework is, check out the Prohibited Conduct Fact Sheet.

For more information on the Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy, check out the Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Fact Sheet.

Click here to view our Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy.

Lodging a Complaint
Below are some simple tips to remember when considering lodging a complaint with Sport Integrity Australia:

• Anyone can make a complaint.
• Only complaints relating to allege breaches of prohibited conduct under the National Integrity Framework can be submitted to Sport Integrity Australia.
• Complaints can only be actioned if the person who allegedly committed the behaviour is bound by our sport (i.e. they must have agreed to be bound by the policy via membership or agreement).
• Complaints relating to selections, governance, personal grievances, whistle-blower, or code of conduct are not covered under the National Integrity Framework. Complaints of this nature should be submitted to secretary@pentaqueaustralia.org.au

To report a breach of an integrity policy, submit directly to Sport Integrity Australia via:

• Webform https://www.sportintegrity.gov.au
• Phone: 1300 027 232

Lodging a Complaint about other Integrity Matters

Below are some simple tips to remember when considering lodging a complaint with Sport Integrity Australia:

• Complaints relating to selections, governance, personal grievances, code of conduct or social media behaviour are not covered under the National Integrity Framework. Complaints of this nature should be submitted to your State/Territory Association in the first instance.

For all other complaints, report directly to: