Sports Bulletin Report
SINGAPORE: The XIX International Federation of Sport Climbing (IFSC) General Assembly concluded here on Saturday, as the Mayor of Singapore, Southeast District, Mohammad Fahmi Aliman was the guest of honour for the final day.
On this occasion chief guest Mohammad Fahmi Aliman thanked the IFSC and the delegates for coming to Singapore and highlighted the impact that climbing has had on the southeast Asian country with more than 40 gyms now operating.
Delegates from the 46 National Federations were presented with the IFSC 2022 Annual Report which was introduced by the IFSC President Marco Scolaris. He highlighted some of the achievements of the year including climbing’s introduction to the European Championships in Munich, Germany and the successful IFSC Climbing Summit.
IFSC Vice-President Wolfgang Wabel presented a review of the World Cup Series, The World Games, Youth World Championships and European Championships before introducing a video to promote the upcoming 2023 World Championships in Bern, Switzerland. This was followed by the selection of Seoul as the host of the 2025 Climbing World Championships after a presentation from the Korea Alpine Federation (KAF).
Delegates received an update on the work of the Sport Department from IFSC Sport Director Maddie Dunn which included the event strategy and the bidding process as well as information regarding the future of Athlete Screening. This was followed by a presentation from IFSC Vice-President Kobinata Toru who provided updates regarding Paris 2024 and the Olympic Qualifier Series that will begin early next year.
A proposal to change the age eligibility from age 16 to 17 for the senior IFSC events, which includes the World Cups and World Championships, from 2025 onwards was put to the delegates with 57% voting in favour.
Olympian and Athletes’ Commission President Shauna Coxsey spoke passionately about the value that athletes give to having positions on the board and representation throughout the IFSC Commissions structure. She also shared the focus of the Athletes’ Commission for 2023, Speed and Boulder formats, athlete health and fairness and inclusion.
The new IFSC Media and Communications Director Fabrizio Rossini delivered his strategy for the future which includes a new user-friendly website and a focus on internal communications with the Federations and a new approach to content which showcases the athletes.
The final report of the General Assembly was given by the IFSC Development Director Silvia Verdolini who highlighted the value of the development programmes including the World Climbing Academy, the Women in Sport High Performance Pathway, and the routesetter clinics.
Prior to the closing remarks from the IFSC President, delegates were asked to vote for the hosts of the 2024 and 2025 General Assemblies, which were duly awarded to Santiago in 2024 and Cyprus in 2025 after presentations from Willy Montenegro, President of the Chilean Climbing Federation, and Pavlos Georgiades, President of Cyprus Mountaineering Climbing & Orienteering.
Looking ahead to the rest of 2023, President Scolaris highlighted the European Games in Poland, the Pan American Games in Chile and the Asian Games in China which will include Climbing for the very first time.
