85th FIG Congress & Elections

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This Friday, Oct. 25th, FIG is holding elections for President, Vice-Presidents, Executive Committee, Council Members, and Technical Committees. New terms begin January 1st and run for four years. The results will be posted live here:


It's Watanabe vs Gayibov for FIG President. Donatella Sacchi is running unopposed for head of the women's technical committee. Steve Butcher vs Andrew Tombs for head of the men's technical committee. If you click through the above site you can see everyone else who's running against who for all the other positions.

This is what else they plan to work on:

NEW MEMBERS

The FIG is set to welcome five new affiliated national gymnastics federations during the Congress: Antigua and Barbuda (ANT), Cote d’Ivoire (CIV), Guinea (GUI), Kenya (KEN) and Zambia (ZAM). If the Congress approves these affiliations, it will increase the total number of FIG affiliated federations to 164.

FINANCIAL MATTERS

The approval of the quadrennial plan for 2025-2028 is one of the main responsibilities of the Congress. Approval of this budget will allow the FIG to operate and achieve its objectives, which include managing World Championships in each of its seven disciplines as well as Gymnastics for All events, managing other international events and competitions and supporting the federation's global education and development programs.

ETHICS, GOVERNANCE AND SAFEGUARDING

The Congress will hear reports from the independent Gymnastics Ethics Foundation, the FIG Foundation for Solidarity as well as updates on safeguarding, the ASOIF Good Governance report and the results of the new NF-Insights project to gain a better understanding of the FIG’s global membership.

Furthermore, proposed changes to the FIG Statutes include the addition of Para-gymnastics as a new competitive discipline within the FIG, along with provisions that will help to pave the way for a new, consumer-facing brand for the FIG.


This is what they have approved so far:

Official news from the Executive Committee - 22-23 October 2024​

The FIG Executive Committee (EC) met in Doha (QAT) on 22-23 October. Here is a summary of the main decisions.

PROPOSALS FROM COMMISSIONS / WORKING GROUPS

The EC approved the proposals from the following commissions / working groups:

  • Competition Innovation Commission: To establish guidelines for the evaluation of the World Cup and Challenge Cup events during the cycle 2025-2028.
  • To work on the establishment of a World Ranking list that includes all FIG Official competitions (World Championships, World Cups and Challenge Cups).
PROPOSED CHANGES TO RULES

The EC approved changes to the rules for the Medical Organisation of FIG the Competitions and Events. The revised rules will be published on the FIG website in due course.

85TH FIG CONGRESS

The EC approved the running of the Congress meeting (24-26 October). The draw for the order of the presentations of candidates for the position of FIG President (election on 25 October) also took place. Farid Gayibov (AZE) will present first, and Morinari Watanabe (JPN) will present second.

NATIONALITY CHANGES

The EC approved the following nationality changes:

  • Analis Anyara PEREZ DE LEON – WAG gymnast (junior) – Former: ESP / New: DOM
  • Nika ZAJC – RG gymnast (senior) – Former: SLO / New: SUI
  • Zofia-Kalina KOPCZYNSKI – WAG gymnast (junior) Former: BEL / New: LUX
  • Elena MESHERYAKOVA – RG judge – Former: UZB / New: NZL
 
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Yes, now representing Trinidad and Tobago.
 
This is so weird.

I don't think I realized the previous president was leaving.

Steve was a good MTC president, frankly. If he does it again, it might work out well.
 
I quite like the idea of a world ranking system!
They had one for a long time. I am not sure when or why they stopped it. It didn't work that well because some athletes don't do lots of competitions. So great gymnasts were ranked too low and gymnasts that did lots of World Cups but weren't as good were ranked higher.

They tried weighting Worlds and Olympics more, and it helped. They also had a thing where old points would cut in half (I think) after a year or two, so that the list was dynamic and favored recent results without discounting past results, but gymnasts who had amassed tons of points in the past were still high on the list after multiple years of not even competing.
 
They had one for a long time. I am not sure when or why they stopped it. It didn't work that well because some athletes don't do lots of competitions. So great gymnasts were ranked too low and gymnasts that did lots of World Cups but weren't as good were ranked higher.

They tried weighting Worlds and Olympics more, and it helped. They also had a thing where old points would cut in half (I think) after a year or two, so that the list was dynamic and favored recent results without discounting past results, but gymnasts who had amassed tons of points in the past were still high on the list after multiple years of not even competing.
Would something like "last 6 results, with last 2 only counting for half" improve it? It would be a bit more helpful if NA and/or SA had at least one world cup event.

Even tennis, where they basically play unless injured, i don't think has a mechanism for holding points/place for players coming back from injury so you end up with top 10 players ranked 50 and unseeded in tournaments which can definitely bust a bracket.
 
Watanabe wins over Gayibov once again. USA basically has two members on the Men's Technical Committee now. Nelli Kim lost re-election as Vice President, replaced by PAGU President Naomi Valenzo.

President
Won: JPN Moriani Watanabe (current)
Lost: AZE Farid Gayibov (new)

Vice Presidents
Won: QAT Ali Al-Hitmi (current)
Won: TUR Suat Celen (current)
Won: MEX Naomi Valenzo (new)
Lost: BLR Nellie Kim (current)
Lost: FIN Jani Tanskanen (new)


Executive Committee
Won: RUS Vassily Titov (current)
Won: USA Li Li Leung (current)
Won: CHN Zhou Qiurui (new)
Won: DOM Edwin Rodriguez (new)
Won: CAN Jeffrey Thomson (new)
Won: GRE Eirini Aindili (new)
Won: THA Srayuth Patanasak (new)
Lost: ROU Maria Fumea (current)
Lost: FIN Jani Tanskanen (current)
Lost: GER Alfons Hoelzl (new)
Lost: SLO Aljaz Pegan (new)
Lost: IRI Zahra Inche Dargahi (new)
Lost: POR Joao Paulo Rocha (new)
Lost: ALG Sofiane Zahi (new)
Lost: ISL Solveig Jonsdottir (new)
Lost: UZB Timur Abduvaliev (new)
Lost: PAK Ahmad Parvaiz (new)


Didn't run for re-election: Ali Al-Hitmi and Suat Celen

Technical Committee President - MAG
Won: GBR Andrew Tombs (new)
Lost: TTO Steve Butcher (new)

Technical Committee - MAG
Won: KOR Han Yoon Soo (current)
Won: USA Butch Zunich (current)
Won: ESP Julio Felipe Marcos (current)
Won: CHN Li Jing (new)
Won: TTO Steve Butcher (new)
Won: EGY Mohamed Soliman (new)
Lost: RUS Dmitrii Andreev (current)
Lost: LAT Arturs Mickevics (current president)


Didn't run for re-election: Jeffrey Thomson and Andrew Tombs

Technical Committee President - WAG
Won: ITA Donatella Sacchi (current)

Technical Committee - WAG
Won: EGY Nehad Zayed (current)
Won: ARG Helena Lario (current)
Won: AUT Johanna Gratt (current)
Won: RUS Liubov Andrianova (current)
Won: UZB Lyudmila Li (new)
Won: AUS Trisha Hade (new)
Lost: PUR Yazaira Davila Cabrera (new)
Lost: LAT Nadezda Seile (new)


I didn't type out the councils for each continental union or the auditors, full results plus how many votes each person received can be found on this page:

https://www.gymnastics.sport/publicdir/congress/election.php?display=president
 
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FIG without Nelli Kim? And the earth is continuing to rotate?
 
She only got 10 votes during the first round!!! Wow... What did she do to fall out of favor?

That's shocking, but also, the Men's Technical Committee is half new. I wonder what's going on!!!!!!

But Butcher lost the presidency. I wonder if that was because people were worried about American domination of that committee...
 
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Seems like a lot of the Russian and Belorussian candidates struggled.

Butcher wasn't the current MTC president. I can't recall if he stepped down or just opted not the run again a while back. Then he switched nationality to Trinidad and Tobago. He did get elected to the MTC, so the US basically has two reps, with Butch Zunich also getting elected.
 


The newly elected Vice Presidents
vp.png

Ali Al-Hitmi, Naomi Valenzo, Suat Celen
 
How is she going to get skills named for herself now?

It is a truth, universally acknowledged, that all skills contained in the WAG COP were first performed by Nelli Kim and must therefore be named after her.

Is that weird Nelli Kim bb dismount from 1980 still in the COP? - the running side somi in- tuck back out

 
I'm using that video the next time someone tries to tell me split leaps were so much better in the 70s and 80s.

People tell you that?

I'm not sure there was an actual requirement to hit 180 in the 1970s - I think the requirement was for 2 large leaps or something similar
 
Pretty sure the back leg never attaining the height of the front leg was a deduction even then?
 
Nellie Kim and Liubou Charkashyna are out.
 

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