ABSTRACT
This chapter reflects a common theme: duality – the quality, condition or instance of opposition between two concepts, or two aspects of the same 'thing'. The Sochi case is an excellent example of the dual junction where sports diplomacy currently resides. The chapter founds, however, that the practice of exploiting sport for political ends is opportunistic, sporadic and, at times, clumsy. It sport is an untapped diplomatic resource, one that can be employed to amplify a government message, boost a country's international image and brand and, most importantly, create opportunities for dialogue away from formal settings. A focus on the relationship between sport, sportspeople and Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) with a limited budget or capacity for diplomacy would be valuable for the canon. To realise the human, integrative and global civil society agenda is to therefore move beyond the state.
