The first meeting of the IWF Reform and Governance Commission was held with Mr. Darren Charles Kane of Australia selected to start as Chair.
The Commission has been made responsible for developing a new constitution and bylaws with a deadline of 22nd January 2021. The new governing documents are to be circulated to IWF Member Federations two months prior to the IWF Electoral Reform Congress scheduled for 24th March 2021.
Alongside Kane, who also sits on the Legal Committee of FINA, will be Damaris Itzel Young Aranda of Panama, a former international athlete who is also a sports law expert and member of the IOC Athletes’ Entourage Commission. They will be joined by Ximena Restrepo, an Olympic medallist for Colombia who in 2019 became the first ever female Vice President of World Athletics. They will be advised by James Carr of ASOIF, whose work has included responsibility for the delivery of governance measurement and improvement. The independent experts will also be joined by IWF officials.
“I am very grateful to the leading independent experts who have agreed to support the IWF with the huge undertaking ahead of us: revising our governance in just three months,” said IWF Interim President Dr Michael Irani. “The goal of complete reform for the IWF’s governance is ambitious but also achievable. It is also overdue, notably in areas like athlete representation, term limits, accountability and transparency. Fortunately, we have reason to be optimistic. The successful reform of the IWF’s anti-doping procedures, based on principles of independent expertise and wide-ranging consultation, points to what can be achieved and how.”
Next steps for the IWF Reform and Governance Commission will include consideration of proposals from IWF Member Federations, consultation of external bodies (including the IOC, ASOIF, GAISF, WADA and the ITA) and the drafting of new documents.
