IAU Athletes Commission virtual meeting – July 2021
On July 11th, 2021 the IAU Athletes Commission had a virtual meeting with members of the Athletes Commission, IAU President Nadeem Khan and special guest Hilmy Aboud Said who has recently been elected to IAU Executive Council.
It was a truly international meeting with attendees from New Zealand, India, Italy, Sweden, Poland, USA and the Comoros. Items discussed included the current global situation regarding sport and the pandemic and how different federations were coping with the situation. Each member gave us an update on how events were taking place in their respective regions of the world. Some nations were hosting ultra-running events while there were many nations still experiencing hardships and were under strict restrictions with no events taking place.
Another topic for discussion was IAU Championships cancelled for 2021 and what factors are considered when making the decision to cancel the event. This decision is not taking lightly and many factors need to be considered. The most important factor being the welfare of athletes, crew, families and the people if the host nation.
We spoke about the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan and the protocols followed in order for the games to proceed.
Looking ahead to IAU Championships planned for 2022/23 and Championships planned for the end of 2021. Also discussed was the great success of the IAU 6hr Virtual Global Solidarity Weekend.
The meeting was concluded by a suggestion on finding ways to continue the success of the IAU Athletes Commission and to maintain and grow our relationship with the IAU, the Athletes and the National Federations.
Prepared by Wayne Botha
IAU Athletes Commission Chairperson
IAU Communication Committee
