Stephen Frost opened his speech in Toronto by acknowledging that, yes, he's a short, white bloke from England trying to make this summer's London Olympics more diverse and inclusive. But he was dead serious when he said the task is not about being politically correct; it's about doing smart business.
The head of diversity and inclusion for the 2012 Games didn't mince words. Pledging to make this summer's Olympics "a Games for everyone" was one of the biggest reasons London won the bid to be host. Speaking at a Canadian Supplier Diversity Conference on Friday, Frost said the challenges of delivering on that promise have been immense and at times "terrifying." But he believes they will create systematic change.
"LOCOG [London Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games] is not a charity and we're not doing anything that doesn't make these Games better," Frost said in his speech. "It's easy to say things in your campaign, but it's an entirely different thing to deliver them. Well, there aren't enough PR agencies in the world to cover this up if we don't get it right."
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Frost, himself a gay man, has involved former NBA player and gay athlete John Amaechi for perspectives on inclusion for gay and lesbians at the Games. He has also worked with British Paralympic wheelchair racing champion Tanni-Grey Thompson on issues of accessibility for disabled athletes and spectators.
"It's hard work, so often it just doesn't get done in many businesses or projects," Frost said. "But we need to reject tokenistic diversity inclusiveness. The Olympics often becomes a repository for the world's problems. The London vision will definitely empower change, enhancing the hiring of disabled people, including gays and lesbians and dealing with homophobia in sport, bringing cultural communities together. We're not going to solve the world's problems, but we are going to use the power of the Games for change."
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