The symposium in Moscow, an opportunity or a missed chance ?https://www.facebook.com/groups....3994149 Last weekend a symposium was organized on behalf of FIG President Morinari Watanabe. Since a year or 2 we had seen growing problems in competitions and dropping public interest. The fact that the difficulty became an open score was, in my modest opinion, the onset of a series of complications that made our sport less attractive.
After the publication of the draft of the new COP for 2021-2024 my worst nightmare was confirmed. Basically nothing was changed and if nothing was done about it, the situation would only get worse. Of course our President was very aware of this. I had the chance to speak with him shortly during one of the major competitions in 2017 and he expressed his worries about the way this sport was developing.
I launched a petition in August 2019 with as main title : ''Make our sport beautiful, attractive and fair again instead of complicated, difficult and biased.''
Nearly 3000 people signed this petition and that is not a small number. I could speak with a lot of coaches and judges in international competitions. The comments they gave were ''of the record'' but a constant reminder that things were going wrong, very wrong.
The President invited all federations to give feedback on the draft of the new COP. These comments were collected in November 2019. The TC could take notice of them and is fully aware of it. I welcome very much the initiative the President took to organize a symposium. The only remark I had, was that I did not think that Moscow was the right place to do it. I would have expected Lausanne instead.
So last weekend, all ''the sopranos'' of international RG came together in Moscow.
6 presentations were made at the Moscow Symposium, most of them with similar proposals.
Each of the proposals was put to a (consulting) vote. The experts present, voted and gave their opinion on these changes.
Over 90 specialists from different countries attended the symposium.
The technical committee, which will meet in Lausanne starting this week, will make a formal decision soon.
It was striking for me that no comments were found in the social media from the specialists present in Moscow. Nothing, nada. So a conference of 2 full days, brainstorming, listening to presentations, voting on certain proposals and nobody can express the headlines of the intentions or preferences expressed by the participants ?
I did notice a lot of ‘’did you see me’’ pictures. People that needed to document their presence in Moscow with nice photo’s, often together with their ‘’friends’’ which they pretend to admire but at the same time fight in every competition. The vast majority came to listen a few brave ones came to speak. Only a few leading countries presented their elaborated proposals for a better RG.
So, finally, all the TC already knew since November was once again confirmed while nothing was decided, yet. The TC is supposed to take all this wisdom home and start (?) working on a new draft of COP that should be approved by the EC in May 2020.
Interesting to remark is that only 2 TC members will be re electable in October of this year during the session in Antalaya in Turkey were the new elections will take place. FIG rules only allow 3 Olympiads in the same committee and thus the majority of present members will have to be replaced.
The new COP will have to be applied by the next TC and if now is not taken the opportunity to put our sport back on a level that attracts public and media, including sponsors, all the efforts of the past months will have been in vain.
The great opportunity of last weekend will have become an historical missed chance. Together with our President, Morinari Watanabe and all supporters for a better, more beautiful, attractive and fair RG, I hope this time is the right time.
I will do everything that is within my limited possibilities to prevent otherwise. Are you with me dear friends ?
