The International Olympic Committee (IOC) suspended its recognition of SportAccord on Sunday, saying it is ready to discuss restructured representation with the organisation’s stakeholders. 

The IOC had recognised and worked with SportAccord, the “umbrella group” for Olympic and non-Olympic sports federations, for many years. 

Relationships between the two organisations have deteriorated since SportAccord president Marius’ Vizer’s criticism of IOC president Thomas Bach’s Agenda 2020 programme of reform at SportAccord Convention in April. 

Many international federations (IFs) of Olympic and non-Olympic sports have since left SportAccord. 

Despite Vizer’s resignation last week, the IOC has withdrawn its recognition of SportAccord. 

“The IOC will continue its ongoing and direct relationship with the IFs and other members of the Olympic Movement,” the IOC said in a statement issued during an executive board meeting in Lausanne.

“We encourage and support them in all the initiatives being taken to restructure their representation following the serious internal problems of SportAccord.”

“We have been in contact with many of the IFs and their representative bodies in the last days and we have been advised that they want to take some measures in this respect.

“We would like to invite the representatives of different groups to further discuss this issue and to come to an agreement among all stakeholders.

“We will first wait for their deliberations and consultations to conclude, and we are ready to support them and ready to invite the representatives of the different groups, including the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) and the Association of International Olympic Winter Sports Federations (AIOWF), the Association of Recognised International Sports Federations (ARISF),  the Alliance of Independent Members of Sport Accord (AIMS) and the International World Games Association (IWGA), to discuss the restructuring of their agreement for a common approach.”

SportAccord has historically provided support to IFs to ensure the integrity of their sports – a role that the IOC will take up directly during SportAccord’s current circumstances.

“In the meantime, we do not want the clean athletes to suffer in any way from this vacuum. We are offering the IFs concerned all the services and advice in the fight against doping which have been offered so far by SportAccord and financed by the IOC and WADA. 

“We will be making the same offer with regard to good governance as well as on match-fixing and related corruption, and the IOC is ready to provide this support directly. We must ensure that there is not a vacuum during this ongoing process.  

“Like many members of SportAccord, we are suspending our recognition and we will withhold our funding until these questions are answered and an agreement between the stakeholders has been reached.

“We are awaiting the outcome of the consultations and, when the time is right, we would like to invite these stakeholders here to discuss how services can best be provided in the future to the above-mentioned organisations.”

DHL Express, Jordan has extended its support for Generations For Peace to increase the sustainability and impact of the Jordan Schools Programme.

The two organisations share an understanding of the fundamental importance of education, youth leadership and community empowerment. Generations For Peace focuses on empowering teachers and students to address local issues of conflict within schools, which compliments and aligns with DHL’s own “Go Teach” corporate social responsibility goals. 

 “Whilst hailing from different enterprise sectors, we share the common objectives and values that true partnership requires; we both believe that in working together we can achieve more positive impact,” said HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein, Founder and Chairman of Generations For Peace.

To mark this important milestone in the partnership, HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein attended a special DHL event on 26 May celebrating Jordan Independence Day, in the presence of Mr Mahmoud Haj Hussein and his fellow DHL Express senior management team.

“Ours is a relationship that has been nurtured over three years and we are delighted to be able to further build on our commitment to Generations For Peace,” said Mahmoud Haj Hussein, Country Manager for DHL Express Jordan.

“At the heart of our highly valued collaboration is the promise that we are both dedicated to delivering excellence, a brighter future and significant improvements to many people’s lives.”

DHL will continue to support global shipments to Generations For Peace programmes across the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Asia.

The bidding process for the 2021 and 2023 FINA World Championships is underway, with ten cities from seven countries across four continents having expressed an interest. 

Budapest had originally been selected for the 2021 Games, but its hosting was brought forward to 2017 when Guadalajara, Mexico pulled out of hosting the 2021 edition. 

FINA said it has received expressions of interest from Argentina, Australia (Melbourne or Sydney), China (Wuhan or Nanjing), Germany (two potential cities), Japan, Turkey and Qatar to host the showcase aquatics event.

FINA said it is in discussions with each of the potential candidates, providing them with all the necessary information to plan their proposals. 

An information meeting will take place on 30 June 2015 for nations and cities that have shown an interest in bidding.

FINA said it hopes to announce the chosen host cities of the 2021 and 2023 FINA World Championships by the end of 2015.

“We are delighted with the strong level of interest from a number of different cities who want to host swimming’s showcase event,” said FINA President, Dr. Julio C. Maglione.

“I believe that they are all attracted by the evidence that the FINA World Championships brings clear economic, social, cultural, tourism and sports impacts to every host city. There is a measurable benefit through better youth and community facilities, through high-performance opportunities, and through showcasing your city to a global audience.”

The FINA World Championships is one of world’s most followed international sport events. A cumulative audience of 4.5 billion watched the 2013 FINA World Championships in Barcelona, Spain, across six platforms.

The 2015 FINA World Championships will take place in Russia for the first time on 24 July to 9 August 2015, in the city of Kazan. 2,200 athletes from a record 188 countries have registered so far.

The next two editions will be held in Budapest, Hungary, in 2017 and in Gwangju, Korea, in 2019. 

FINA, the Fédération Internationale de Natation, is the governing body for aquatics worldwide. Its five disciplines – swimming, open water swimming, diving, water polo and synchronised swimming – are all included in the Olympic programme.

Joseph “Sepp” Blatter’s surprise announcement on June 2 that he was resigning as president of FIFA was sensational, not least because it happened just four days after his re-election for a historic fifth term. 

Blatter’s rivals for the presidency – Jerome Champagne, Luis Figo, Michel Van Praag and of course Prince Ali, who was the only challenger left standing at the FIFA Congress – all based their campaigns on a common message: the organisation was tainted with allegations of corruption and needed to clean its image.

Blatter, on the other hand, barely uttered a word to the press during the run up to the election – even when investigators raided the Baur au Lac Hotel in Zurich to arrest a number of officials on corruption charges.

In the election, Blatter emerged victorious but storms continued to gather, including allegations that FIFA administered a $10m bribe from South Africa to CONCACAF president Jack Warner. As media reports emerged that Blatter was himself under investigation by FBI and US prosecutors, he announced to the world – at just a couple of hours’ notice – that he was to step aside. 

What was perhaps most extraordinary about Blatter’s resignation speech was that he used it as an opportunity to position himself as a reformer at heart, shackled by circumstances. His resignation, he said, was necessary to make way for “structural changes” that he had himself been advocating for many years. 

These changes including loosening the grip of the continental confederations through which FIFA’s members are aligned, a reduction in size of the Executive Committee – presumably to give non-ExCo FIFA members greater influence – and capping terms of office. 

Whatever you may think of Blatter’s claims to be a democratiser, a process of reform is now inevitable. While it might have taken external events to drive FIFA to the brink, at last it can contemplate the reform it needs. 

Football remains the world’s most popular sport and the FIFA World Cup its biggest single sport event. And if democratisation may not be Blatter’s true legacy, FIFA has undeniably embraced all regions of the world under his presidency. 

Anything can happen now, depending on the outcome of further investigations, which are by no means focused exclusively on the hosts of the future World Cups. The world waits. 

With charges of corruption within FIFA escalating, president Sepp Blatter announced on Tuesday that he will resign to make way for “deep-rooted structural change”. 

At a press conference in Zurich called at extremely short notice, Blatter announced he will resign “at the earliest opportunity”.

The announcement came shortly after reports that FIFA administered an alleged $10m bribe from the South African government to CONCACAF president Jack Warner in 2008, and an ABC News report claiming that Blatter was himself under investigation by FBI and US prosecutors. 

Two days before Blatter’s re-election, several officials were arrested in a dawn raid on the Baur au Lac Hotel. The US Department of Justice has since charged 14 officials employed by FIFA and associated agencies with 47 charges of corruption including racketeering, fraud and money laundering.  

"While I have a mandate from the membership of FIFA, I do not feel that I have a mandate from the entire world of football,” Blatter said. 

"Therefore, I have decided to lay down my mandate at an extraordinary elective Congress.”

The extraordinary Congress is likely to be convened between September 2015 and March 2016. 

“This will need to be done in line with FIFA's statutes and we must allow enough time for the best candidates to present themselves and to campaign,” said Blatter.

Waiting until the next ordinary FIFA Congress on 13 May 2016 would “cause unnecessary delay”, he said.

Blatter said by stepping down he would be able to focus on reforming FIFA. “Since I shall not be a candidate, and am therefore now free from the constraints that elections inevitably impose, I shall be able to focus on driving far-reaching, fundamental reforms that transcend our previous efforts. 

“For years, we have worked hard to put in place administrative reforms, but it is plain to me that while these must continue, they are not enough.”

He also said the structure of FIFA’s Executive Committee and its relations with the continental confederations must be overhauled. 

“The Executive Committee includes representatives of confederations over whom we have no control, but for whose actions FIFA is held responsible. We need deep-rooted structural change.

“The size of the Executive Committee must be reduced and its members should be elected through the FIFA Congress. The integrity checks for all Executive Committee members must be organised centrally through FIFA and not through the confederations.”

Blatter, who has presided over FIFA for 17 years, also called for term limits, “not only for the president but for all members of the Executive Committee.”

"I have fought for these changes before and, as everyone knows, my efforts have been blocked. This time, I will succeed.”

Blatter has asked Domenico Scala, Independent Chairman of FIFA’s Audit and Compliance Committee to oversee the transition over the coming months. 

“Mr. Scala enjoys the confidence of a wide range of constituents within and outside of FIFA and has all the knowledge and experience necessary to help tackle these major reforms.”

Blatter thanked all his supporters, saying “What matters to me more than anything is that when all of this is over, football is the winner."

Prince Ali bin al Hussein of Jordan denied Blatter a majority in the first round of voting in Friday’s election and he has not ruled out standing again. 

Prince Ali told CNN "I think this is the right move from Sepp Blatter and I think we have to look to the future.

"I am always there to serve football and I think that's the most important thing and to do so much work to fix this organisation in a proper way.

"I am at the disposal of our national associations. I don't want to be somebody who kicks somebody in the knees. At the end of the day I will do my part to help the national associations.”

Other possible candidates include Michel Platini, Luis Figo, Jerome Champagne and Michel van Praag.

His resignation was welcomed by IOC president Thomas Bach, who said “We highly respect this decision of President Blatter to step down and to initiate the necessary reforms – and to make way for a new leadership of FIFA to drive these changes.”

Sepp Blatter remains an IOC member until his 80th birthday on 10 March 2016. 

This is a difficult time for football, the fans and for FIFA as an organisation. We understand the disappointment that many have expressed and I know that the events of today will impact the way in which many people view us.

As unfortunate as these events are, it should be clear that we welcome the actions and the investigations by the US and Swiss authorities and believe that it will help to reinforce measures that FIFA has already taken to root out any wrongdoing in football.

While there will be many who are frustrated with the pace of change, I would like to stress the actions that we have taken and will continue to take. In fact, today’s action by the Swiss Office of the Attorney General was set in motion when we submitted a dossier to the Swiss authorities late last year.

Let me be clear: such misconduct has no place in football and we will ensure that those who engage in it are put out of the game. Following the events of today, the independent Ethics Committee – which is in the midst of its own proceedings regarding the awarding of the 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups -- took swift action to provisionally ban those individuals named by the authorities from any football-related activities at the national and international level. These actions are on top of similar steps that FIFA has taken over the past year to exclude any members who violate our own Code of Ethics.

We will continue to work with the relevant authorities and we will work vigorously within FIFA in order to root out any misconduct, to regain your trust and ensure that football worldwide is free from wrongdoing. 

With several FIFA officials charged with corruption just two days before the presidential election, HRH Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan has called for an end to FIFA’s ongoing crisis. 

“We cannot continue with the crisis in FIFA, a crisis that has been ongoing and is not just relevant to the events of today,” he said in a statement to the press.

“FIFA needs leadership that governs, guides and protects our national associations. Leadership that accepts responsibility for its actions and does not pass blame. Leadership that restores confidence in the hundreds of millions of football fans around the world.”

After a raid at Baur au Lac hotel in Zurich on Wednesday morning, ten FIFA Executive Committee members will be questioned by Swiss authorities “on suspicion of the acceptance of bribes and kick-backs” in relation to 2018/22 World Cup bids. The arrests were instigated by US Department of Justice. 

Prince Ali is the only challenger to FIFA president Sepp Blatter, who was widely predicted to be reelected on Friday. FIFA has faced calls from the English Football Association and Transparency International to postpone the election. 

Sepp Blatter has not been charged. FIFA spokesman Walter de Gregorio told press that Blatter was “relaxed” about the day’s events because he was “not involved in them at all”, going on to explain: “Well he is not dancing in his office. He is very calm; he is fully co-operative with everything. That’s what I meant. He’s not a happy man, saying ‘wow wow’.”

De Gregorio also said the presidential election would go on ahead on Friday as planned and that a revote on the 2018 and 2012 World Cup hosts was out of the question.

“This for FIFA is good. It is not good in terms of image or reputation, but in terms of cleaning up, this is good,” he said.

“It is not a nice day, but it is also a good day. The process goes on and we are looking forward.” 

Generations For Peace and Orange Jordan on Tuesday announced a new phase in their partnership, which will benefit Generations For Peace programmes in schools and community centres across Jordan. 

Under the new partnership, Orange Jordan will provide direct and in-kind support for the Jordan Schools Programme, which addresses violence in schools, and the Social Cohesion Programme, which builds “conflict transformation skills” at community level.

Orange Jordan will also continue to support the telecommunications needs of GFP’s Amman-based headquarters.

“Both Orange Jordan and Generations For Peace share the same goal: to change lives by connecting people and improving communications,” said HRH Prince Feisal Al Hussein, founder and chairman of Generations For Peace.

“This is at the heart of Orange Jordan’s service offering to businesses and communities; it is also at the heart of GFP’s work to transform conflict and reduce violence through dialogue in communities around the world. 

“We are proud to call Orange Jordan our exclusive telecoms partner for our programmes in Jordan.”

The “in-kind” support includes marketing activities. The two organisations will work together to awareness and support amongst Orange Jordan customers for Generations For Peace programmes. 

Programme participants will have opportunities to engage in Orange Foundation vocational skills training, while Orange Jordan employees will also be able to participate in Generations For Peace-led volunteer activities in communities. 

The new agreement builds on the successful partnership between Generations For Peace and Orange Jordan which started in 2012.

“We are thrilled to be able to extend our partnership with Generations For Peace, and demonstrate our commitment to improving local communities in Jordan,” said Jean-Francois Thomas, Group CEO of Orange Jordan.

“GFP’s mission aligns directly with our corporate social responsibility to serve our customers and their wider communities.”

As relations between SportAccord and Olympic sports federations continue to deteriorate, SportAccord’s president Marius Vizer has requested meetings with the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) and the president of the International Olympic Committee, Dr. Thomas Bach. 

The meeting requests are a response to a letter from ASOIF president Francesco Ricci Bitti sent Vizer yesterday, in which he said ASOIF was suspending relations because SportAccord is not necessary for Olympic sports.  

“In order to define the way forward and relieve pressure from the IFs, I have decided to confirm meeting dates with ASOIF and have launched a meeting proposal with President Bach, a meeting which I believe needs to be held for the benefit and the unity of the Sports Movement,” Vizer said in a statement. 

HOST CITY contacted ASOIF’s director Andrew Ryan, who confirmed that a meeting with Vizer is being considered. 

“We have had a response proposing dates; we’ve got to now see which dates we can find time to get together,” Ryan told HOST CITY.

“We suspended our relations with them and now we have to sit together and discuss what the future holds. 

“The letter makes the ASOIF position very clear; we can’t in any way make it more clear. At the moment there’s nothing more to say. Everything that needs to be said was put in the letter yesterday.”

Whether IOC president Bach will want to meet with Vizer, who criticised him publicly a month ago at SportAccord Convention in Sochi, remains to be seen. 

"We read Mr. Vizer's comments and press release in the media. The IOC President has responded directly to this letter before making any public comment," and IOC spokesperson told HOST CITY.

In his statement, Vizer said “I look forward to open and honest discussions which are for the benefit of sport. I hope to have positive discussions which will lead to tangible solutions.”

Since SportAccord Convention, ten summer Olympic sports federations and their primary representative body, ASOIF, have suspended their engagement with SportAccord.

Despite the exodus of Olympic sports federations, Vizer said the number of applications for SportAccord membership has actually increased over the last month. 

SportAccord is the union of Olympic and non-Olympic international federations.

“SportAccord continues and will continue to provide services to empower the International Federations and to defend their interests,” Vizer said.

The International Triathlon Union (ITU) confirmed the locations of multiple World Championship events on Tuesday, after an ITU Executive Board meeting held in conjunction with the World Triathlon in Yokohama.

“We had a great amount of interest from cities in hosting an ITU event, and received some truly incredible bids for not only triathlon, but also for multisport races,” said ITU President and IOC Member Marisol Casado. “Triathlon has a very bright future with so many spectacular sites secured to host races in the next several years.”

The 2018 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final has been granted to the Gold Coast, which has hosted World Championship races in 1991 and 2009.

The host of the 2018 Commonwealth Games hosted the World Triathlon Series for the first time this year and is expected to welcome the Series again in 2016 and 2017, before both elite and age group athletes compete for World Championship titles in 2018. 

“This is a fantastic result for Queensland and triathlon, we are very excited to be able to host the world’s best ITU age group and professional athletes here on the Gold Coast,” said IRONMAN Asia-Pacific CEO Geoff Meyer.

Leeds will now host the World Triathlon Series in 2016, taking the place of World Triathlon London. A cycling superhighway is being built throughout the Yorkshire city, with construction work to take place in Hyde Park in 2016.

“It’s fantastic news that Leeds’ bid has been successful,” said reigning Olympic champion and Leeds resident Alistair Brownlee.

“I am sure the crowds will come out in force to see a major triathlon event in Leeds for the first time, and I’m sure it will be a brilliant event. 

Leeds serves as the training grounds for several of the UK’s top triathletes. 

In addition to the World Triathlon Series announcements, the ITU Executive Board voted on several multisport championship events. 

In 2017, Penticton, Canada will organize the first Multisport World Championships Festival, which will see duathlon, long distance triathlon, aquathlon and cross triathlon championship races organized together during a week-long festival.

This innovative format now allows for athletes to compete in various multisport races, as opposed to electing only one each season. 

“We are extremely honoured to be chosen to host the 2017 Multisport World Championships,” said race director Michael Brown. “Penticton has a deep history in triathlon and we look to build on a strong foundation created by this great community. With the support of the city, the Mayor, his council and all of Penticton’s citizens I know we will create a 10-day festival that will live up to all the athletes expectations.”

The Executive Board awarded the 2018 Multisport Festival to Odense, Denmark.

Lake Crackenback, Australia has been announced as the site of the 2016 ITU Cross Triathlon World Championships – the last year that will see each multisport World Championships organized as stand-alone events.

 “This is fantastic news for the sport of triathlon in Australia,” said Anne Gripper, CEO of Triathlon Australia.

“To have the world’s best elite and age group athletes competing on the Gold Coast in 2018, as well as in the magnificent Snowy Mountains at Cross Triathlon World Championships in 2016, provides Australian triathletes of all ages with a great incentive to train and compete over the next three years as they strive to wear the green and gold on home soil.”

The ITU also confirmed that it will be suspending its membership of SportAccord, with the International Weightlifting Federation following suit to take the number of Olympic sport federations leaving SportAccord to ten.  

ITU said it will shortly release the bidding conditions for the 2016 Triathlon World Cup events, the 2017 World Triathlon Series races, the 2019 World Triathlon Grand Final, and the 2019 Multisport Festival. The full 2016 ITU World Triathlon Series will also be announced soon.