The IWGA Executive Committee (ExCo) gathered in Birmingham (GBR) on 10 April 2024 to prepare for the upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM) to be held on 1 May 2024 in Esslingen (GER).
A welcome message from President Perurena kicked-off the meeting which took place at the SportAccord Convention, where the international sport community gathered for the week. Following the approval of the latest minutes from the January ExCo meeting, President Perurena updated the members about the IWGA recent visit in Chengdu for the 2nd Coordination Committee meeting (CoCom) held on 3 April and the series of working meetings that took place ahead of the CoCom.
The ExCo meeting then focused on the preparations of the AGM. Additional major topics which were discussed in Birmingham included:
IWGA Athletes Committee
The establishment of an Electoral Committee and amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws were discussed. An electoral calendar as well as overall preparations for the elections to be held during TWG 2025 in Chengdu (CHN) were also part of the items put forward on Wednesday.
Meeting with IOC President Thomas Bach
President Perurena provided a report about his meeting with Thomas Bach at the Olympic House on 12 March. He recalled Bach’s and the Olympic Movement’s commitment to The World Games and the importance of promotion and development of non-Olympic disciplines.
TWG Chengdu 2025
Following an official visit from 1-3 April in Chengdu, CEO Gossow and Deputy CEO Felli provided an update about the preparations of the Games. They outlined the readiness of the organisers to host the event next year.
The broadcast and images distribution were also discussed. ISB, the IWGA’s official Games Host Broadcaster is currently conducting negotiations with CCTV / CMG Sport and the Chengdu Local Organising Committee regarding the domestic distribution of images and a possible extended coverage of TWG. The final new proposed Production Plan is yet to be signed-off by the LOC.
OTT Platform
An update about the launch of the IWGA OTT platform (the Super Platform) was provided, while a timeline of the development’s different phases and the overall concept were presented.
TWG Series
It was announced that the IWGA is in final stages of negotiation with Hong Kong to host the first leg of TWG Series from 9-13 October 2024. A second leg will be staged in Chengdu in March or April 2025. This Series will serve as a general rehearsal for TWG and will promote the sports on the TWG programme to engage with local communities and sports fans ahead of the big milestone in August next year.
IWGA Partners – MoUs updates
Several NOCs as well as the International Federation of Sports Chiropractic (FICS) have now co-signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the IWGA in an effort to further develop long-term relationships and collaboration around The World Games and the respective national athletes and activities in the lead-up the TWG 2025.
Among the attendees were IWGA President José Perurena, Vice President Tom Dielen, IWGA Executive Committee Members Anna Arzhanova, Volker Bernardi, Jan Fransoo and John Liljelund, CEO Joachim Gossow, and Deputy CEO Guillaume Felli.
The International World Games Association (IWGA) is a non-profit-making international sports organisation recognised and supported by the International Olympic Committee. The IWGA comprises 38 International Member Sports Federations. It administers and promotes The World Games (TWG), a multi-sport event held every four years that features around 35 sports on its programme. The next edition of TWG will be in Chengdu (CHN) from 7-17 August 2025. 5,000 participants from more than 100 countries are expected to take part in this 12th edition. The latest Games were hosted by Birmingham, Alabama (USA).
For more information, please contact the IWGA Media and Communication team: [email protected], Tel: +41 21 311 12 97, or visit our website.
