The Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR) is discussing, on Wednesday, the notification of President Nicușor Dan on the law requiring that at least 40% of the athletes who perform in a team in official national competitions must be Romanian.
It is about the normative act for the completion of the Physical Education and Sports Law 69/2000.
At the end of last year, the head of state sent a notice of unconstitutionality on the law that requires at least 40% of the athletes who perform in a team in official national competitions to be Romanian, arguing that the normative act is discriminatory.
“I firmly support the objective of encouraging and developing Romanian sports, supporting young athletes and investing in their training. These purposes are legitimate and necessary. However, they must be carried out in compliance with the Romanian Constitution and the law of the European Union, to which Romania is a party“, the head of state wrote on Facebook.
He believes that the law adopted by the Parliament violates the principle of non-discrimination and the free movement of workers, enshrined by both the Constitution and the European treaties, by directly referring to the citizenship of athletes.
In addition, the president claims, the law affects the right to work, by limiting the access of European athletes to national competitions.
At the same time, in his opinion, the requirements of quality and clarity of the law are not respected, including by establishing contraventional sanctions that exceed the general framework provided by the legislation in force, without an express derogation.
“The experience of other European states and UEFA regulations show that supporting locally trained athletes can be done effectively without criteria based on citizenship, but through investment in academies, junior centers and training programs”emphasizes the head of state.
