GAISF VOTE: IDBF YES!

29 April 2007 - A jubilant Alan van Caubergh called directly from the GAISF AGA meeting in Beijing this morning with excellent news: the AGA voted Yes to the IDBF�s application for GAISF membership.

Thanks to the hard work from within the IDBF community, spearheaded by Mike Haslam, and the positive vote by delegates from fellow sports federations the IDBF is now part of the fellowship of international sports federations banded together in the GAISF:

"The General Association of International Sports Federations groups together international sports federations and various other associations to:

defend world-wide sport
become better informed and to inform
to co-operate together and to co-ordinate their activities.

" (source GAISF website)

In addition to international recognition of dragon boat sport as a full-fledged international sport, represented by its own federation dedicated solely to the sport, it is hoped that this will usher in a new era of cooperation and respect between the dragon boat and canoe sports. The sports are, as the IDBF has shown since its founding in 1991, unequivocally separate but equal.

While there are no material advantages in joining the GAISF, it is seen as a stepping-stone to IOC acceptance as an Olympic Federation.

More news will be forthcoming once the team returns from Beijing.

[ Back ]

Last Updated: Monday, 23 August 2010
The European Dragon Boat Federation is a Member of the International Dragon Boat Federation (IDBF) and recognised by the IDBF as the specific Governing Body for Dragon Boating in Europe.
The IDBF is the world governing authority for Dragon Boat Sport and the Member International Federation of SportAccord (the General Association of International Sports Associations) specifically for Dragon Boating. SportAccord is an International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognised sports association.
The IDBF is also an International Federation recognised by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and is a Founder Member of the Association of International Paddle Sports Federation (AIPSF).
This website is the only official website of the European Dragon Boat Federation (EDBF) and is © EDBF 2005. All rights reserved. No commercial reproduction, adaptation, distribution or transmission of any part or parts of this website or any information contained herein by any means whatsoever is permitted without the prior written permission of the EDBF. Framing of this website or any part of it on another site, or mirroring this website on another server, is expressly prohibited.