Mr Bjørn Berge serves as the Council of Europe’s Deputy Secretary General since 1 March 2021.

As the Deputy Secretary General he is involved in a number of key areas of the work of the Organisation, including advising and overseeing the implementation of the Secretary General’s reform agenda, in line with the decisions and priorities of the Committee of Ministers.

His priorities include shaping the Programme and Budget, while ensuring that the Organisation’s activities have maximum impact in advancing democracy, human rights and the rule of law. He also oversees the Council of Europe’s staff policy, as well as other key areas of the work of the Organisation.

Before taking up his post, Mr Berge was for a period of four years Director General and Secretary to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.

Between 2009-2017, he served as Director of the Private Office of the Secretary General and the Deputy Secretary General, helping to prepare, co-ordinate and implement a number of comprehensive reforms of the Organisation.

Mr Berge has over thirty years of international professional experience.

As a former Norwegian diplomat, he served as International Adviser to the Prime Minister and as Deputy Director of the Foreign Minister’s Cabinet responsible for all matters related to Parliament. He also served as speechwriter to three Norwegian Foreign Ministers.

Mr Berge has published several books on a range of issues relating to speech writing and speeches, as well as articles on the Council of Europe’s mandate and work.

He was a Fulbright Scholar and holds a M.A. in International Relations from the Paul Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), Johns Hopkins University, Washington D.C., USA.

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Anders Solheim has been the CEO of Anti-Doping Norway (ADNO) since its establishment in 2003. He has also worked several years for the Norwegian Ministry of Culture and the NOC of Norway. Under his leadership, ADNO has been actively engaged in international cooperation. He has been a member of the WADA Education Committee and Chair for WADA IO program at two major events. From 2014 to 2018 he was the Chair of the Monitoring Group of the Anti-Doping Convention, and from 2018 to 2022 chair of the Ad-Hoc Group drafting the General Principles for Fair Procedure Applicable to Anti-Doping Proceedings in Sport. Solheim played semi-professional football for almost a decade. He is one of the founding members of the Norwegian Players Union. Solheim has a M.A. from the Norwegian School of Sports Sciences, has studied Public Law at the University of Oslo, and recently achieved a UEFA Certificate in Football Management at the Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration.

Shafag Huseynli is the chief executive officer of the Azerbaijan National Anti-Doping Agency and holds the positions of the Vice-Chair of the Monitoring Group of Anti-Doping Convention, Gender equality rapporteur and the Chair of the drafting committee on gender equality in anti-doping of the Council of Europe. She also held a position of a Vice-Chair of Ad hoc group of experts on ensuring effective access of athletes to justice and fair trial. With strong dedication, she advocates the protection of athletes' rights and equality. With a profound commitment to upholding and safeguarding the principles of human rights and the rule of law, she has initiated an extensive international study to explore how athletes, regardless of their sporting, financial and social conditions, as well as the nature of allegations, are treated with fairness and respect in all aspects of anti-doping proceedings.

Daniel Rietiker is a senior lawyer at the European Court of Human Rights where he has been dealing with high profile cases. He is also an adjunct Professor of international law and human rights law at Lausanne University and Suffolk University Law School (Boston, MA). He holds a diploma in international relations from the Geneva Graduate Institute for International and Development Studies (IHEID) and a PhD from the University of Lausanne. In 2014, he was a visiting fellow at the Human Rights Program of Harvard Law School. He is a member of the advisory or academic board of several law journals, including the Hague Yearbook of International Law and the European Convention on Human Rights Law Review. In 2022 he published the book Defending Athletes, Players, Clubs and Fans, Manual for human rights education and litigation in sport, in particular before the European Court of Human Rights, Council of Europe Publishing, Strasbourg.

Marissa Sunio is a Senior Counsel, Regulatory Affairs & Litigation in the Legal Affairs department at WADA. In this role, she focuses on results management, contracts, compliance, laboratory and corporate matters. Prior to WADA, Sunio was an associate attorney at a boutique law firm in the United States specializing in civil litigation. Marissa holds a BA in Political Science and History from the University of California, San Diego. She received her law degree from Whittier Law School and a Masters in Sports Law and Sports Management from Columbia University. On a biannual basis, Marissa leads a course in anti-doping for the Sports and Law Ethics class at Columbia University.

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I have a Master's degree in international and European law, as well as a Master's degree in sports law and economics. I started my career at the Council of Europe, working at the Sport Conventions’ Secretariat. I joined the French Anti-Doping Agency at the end of 2016, where I have been Deputy Legal Director since the end of 2021. My main task being to conduct disciplinary proceedings, I apply the principles at the heart of this conference's programme on a daily basis. I am also involved in projects with the World Anti-Doping Agency and the Council of Europe. In particular, I was recently elected chair of the Advisory Group on Legal Issues (T-DO LI), which is responsible for assisting the Council of Europe's Anti-Doping Convention Monitoring Group on legal issues.

Dr. Inga Kačevska specializes in arbitration, private international law, and sports law. She is regularly acting as arbitrator and counsel in international arbitrations (ICC, CAS, LCIA, etc.). Inga has provided many expert opinions in different forums. She is acknowledged as the best arbitration practitioner in Latvia by Who’sWhoLegal in 2010-2023. She is an associate professor at the University of Latvia and coached Vis Commercial Arbitration team for past 20 years. Inga Kačevska regularly lectures. She is an author of different publications, including the commentary on Latvian Civil Procedure Law. In 2014 the Government of Latvia appointed Dr. Kačevska to the Panel of Arbitrators at ICSID. She is also Member of Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, member of Latvian Sworn Advocates Collegium and of Women in Sports Law. Ms Kačevska was educated at University of Latvia (PhD, Master of Orientalistics, Lawyer’s Diploma) and Chicago Kent College of Law (LLM).

Damien Clivaz is a Swiss qualified lawyer with more than 6 years’ experience in the sports industry. Damien’s practice at the International Testing Agency includes the prosecution of Anti-Doping Rule Violations on behalf of more than 50 International Federations and Major Event Organizers (including at the Olympic Games) before various hearing panels, tribunals, and the Court of Arbitration for Sport. As Senior Counsel at the ITA, Damien has handled more than 100 matters such as innovative and complex prosecutions, whereabout failures and anti-doping investigations. Damien also regularly advises the ITA and its partners on the corporate, regulatory and governance aspects of sports. Prior to joining the ITA, Damien worked in private practice in the international and sports arbitration department of a leading law firm in Geneva.

Michal Rynkowski, Director of the Polish Anti-Doping Agency since 2017, engaged in the fight against doping for 15 years. Chairman of the Advisory Group on Compliance of Monitoring Group of the Anti-Doping Convention of the Council of Europe. Holds a PhD in law from the Faculty of Law and Administration, University of Warsaw. Author of numerous scientific publications in the field of law and doping in sport. Active participant in many international projects in the field of anti-doping.

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Julien Attuil-Kayser, Head of the Anti-Doping Unit, Council of Europe - Julien is the Secretary of the Monitoring Group of the Anti-Doping Convention. He regularly carries out evaluation visits to the 52 States Parties to the Convention and assists them in improving their anti-doping systems. In 2022, he contributed to the drafting of two recommendations on the protection of whistleblowers and on the right to a fair trial in anti-doping disciplinary proceedings. He is also the Secretary of the European Ad Hoc Committee for the World Anti-Doping Agency (CAHAMA), and is directly involved in the work of WADA's decision-making bodies (Executive Committee and Foundation Board). Before joining the Council of Europe in 2003, he was panel registrar at the Human Rights Chamber for Bosnia-Herzegovina. He was then legal advisor to the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights. Julien also spent ten years inspecting prisons and other places of detention in the territory of the Council of Europe. Julien studied international and human rights law in France, Italy and Sweden.

Krišs Grundmanis, ex-professional hockey player who was disqualified from sports for using substance banned from use by athletes. I tested positive for the infamous over the counter drug 'meldonium' in November 2019. I made a clear stand that i was totally unaware of consuming any banned substance and stand by it even today. Despite being open and transparent throughout the process, I received a four-year ban from professional sports. Faced with limited resources and information i was unable to execute my rights and protect myself effectively. While my professional playing career may have come to an unexpected halt due to the four-year ban, I continue to advocate fair and transparent drug testing procedures in sports and work towards ensuring all athletes have equal rights.

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Andy is the Founder and Director of 2AC International, an independent business transformation consultancy to UK and international clients, specialising in the sport sector. Andy was the first Chief Executive of UK Anti-Doping (UKAD), and was responsible for establishing UKAD as a leading organisation managing and promoting clean sport in the UK and internationally. Between 2012 and 2015 Andy was the Chair of CAHAMA. He was a member of the WADA’s first International Standard for Testing Working Group and has played an active role in WADA’s Independent Observer Programmes, including the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games as Chair. From 2016 to 2018, Andy was the Chair of the IPC’s Taskforce to determine whether the Russian Paralympic Committee has met the conditions for reinstatement following their suspension from the IPC before the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. He is a current Board member of the UK Sports Institute and, in 2021, Andy was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Sport by Nottingham Trent University, in recognition of his significant contribution to inclusion within sport.