Executive Committee meeting kicks off 79th AIPS Congress in Doha

Following the introductory President, Secretary General and Treasurer reports, AIPS president Gianni Merlo spoke about the success of the inaugural edition of the Sport Media Pearl Awards held in Abu Dhabi in December and the importance of continuing with such an initiative in the future.

The AIPS president also confirmed the decision that Evelyn Watta would not be continuing her role of Secretary General Interim, which would be taken over by the AIPS Director of Marketing and Special Projects and former Secretary General Roslyn Morris.

“I will resume my duties as an active Executive board member AIPS, and constantly support the many activities of our growing association,” Watta said, thanking all those present for their support during her two-year tenure as Interim Secretary General.

Also discussed at the Executive Committee were the venues for the upcoming AIPS Congresses in 2017 and 2018. Korean EC member and president of the Korean Sports Writers Association Hee Don Sung, presented the proposal of holding next year’s elective congress in the cities of Seul and Pyeongchang. This would give delegates and members from over 100 countries the opportunity to have a first-hand look at the venues and media conditions of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games, less than a year before they are due to be held in the Korean city. It was also announced that Turkey was the most likely candidate to host the 2018 AIPS Congress, with more details regarding this possibility to be revealed in upcoming Executive board meetings.

The pressing issues of the inclusion and recognition of the sports writers associations of Kosovo and Botswana as full AIPS members was also discussed, as was the possibility of including a quota of female members in the Executive Committee.

Credit: Sonja Nikcevic, AIPS Media