The IOF General Assembly will be held on Friday and the digital GA attracts record participation.
All material for the GA can be found here: orienteering.sport/general-assembly-2020
The pre-General Assemby was held today and the proposals from the IOF Member Federations and the IOF Council proposals were presented and discussed:
Proposals from the IOF National Federations:
Finland – Actions to preserve the culture of Fair Play in orienteering
The Finnish Orienteering Federation asks in their proposal for the IOF to propose actions it will take to
preserve the culture of Fair play in our sport.
IOF Council response/proposal: The IOF has initiated actions to address this. The IOF Council proposes that the actions included in the Strategic Directions of the IOF 2020-2022 should be presented and discussed by the IOF Members at the Pre-General Assembly and that a resolution regarding Fair Play be introduced for decision by the Members at the General Assembly.
Czech Republic – Planning IOF International Event Calendar
The Czech Orienteering Federation proposes a calendar for the IOF major events with fixed dates that can only be changed two years in advance.
IOF Council response/proposal: The International Orienteering Federation shall schedule the fixed dates for all event in its event calendar at the latest 2 years in advance. Any changes to this calendar must be announced at a minimum 2 years in advance of the scheduled date for an event, with the exception for changes which are due to external circumstances beyond the control of the IOF.
Norway – Banning the use of fluorinated ski waxes
The Norwegian Orienteering Federations is asking the IOF Council to carry out guidelines and rules for the banning of fluorinated waxing products and to include those in the rules for the winter season 2021/2022.
IOF Council response/proposal: The IOF Council seeks the approval of the General Assembly to provide guidance to minimise or eliminate the use of fluorinated waxing products in Ski Orienteering as soon as practically possible.
Propsals from the IOF Council:
The IOF Council has made proposals for changes to the IOF Statutes in a number of areas, the most important are highlighted here:
Athlete representation in the IOF Council:
Council proposes that two athletes representatives, one of each gender, become members of Council.
The Council shall consist of
· The IOF President
· Three IOF Vice Presidents
· Seven other IOF Council members
· Two Athletes Commission representatives
The athlete representatives in the Council are members of the Athletes Commission (co-chairs). The members of the Athletes Commission are to be elected by the athletes in the respective disciplines and they are elected for a two-year term.
Full details can be read in the GA Binder.
Provisional Membership:
The most difficult criteria for a national organisation to achieve to become a Provisional Member of the IOF is to gain the recognition of the relevant national sports body (Sports Ministry or National Olympic Committee). This is a “chicken-and-egg” scenario as national sports bodies normally require recognition by the IOF and the IOF requires recognition of the national sports body, for any organisation seeking membership. Council proposes to lessen this requirement and proposes an addition to 3.1.1 of the statutes: “Provisional membership may be granted to organisations which have not yet fulfilled all requirements for membership yet have fulfilled the basic requirements of good governance and have demonstrated achievements in the development of the sport in their country.” The “evidence of recognition by the relevant national authority” requirement is proposed to be removed for provisional membership and will only be required to achieve full membership status. All details about this proposal can be read in the GA Binder.
Promote Gender Balance:
The IOF Council proposes to include a minimum of three (previous two) persons of each gender in the IOF Council.
All the propsals were presented and discussed at the pre-General Assembly.
All decisions will be taken on the General Assembly on Friday.