FEI SOLIDARITY LAUNCHED WITH UNANIMOUS SUPPORT OF NATIONAL FEDERATIONS

FEI Solidarity, modelled on the hugely successful Olympic Solidarity programme, has been enshrined in the FEI constitution with the unanimous approval of National Federations attending today’s FEI Extraordinary General Assembly in the Olympic Museum in Lausanne (SUI). FEI Solidarity, which aims to organise assistance to the National Federations, in particular those which have the greatest need, has now been drafted into the FEI Statutes. Assistance from the FEI Solidarity programme will take the form of programmes created jointly by the FEI and the National Federations.

“Today is a very special day for the FEI,” FEI President HRH Princess Haya said. “Thanks to our member federations, the FEI’s development efforts have now been given the prominent place in our Statutes that they so richly deserve. FEI Solidarity is a mirror of Olympic Solidarity and I am incredibly grateful to the IOC for guiding us through the creation of this new structure. For years we in the FEI have been struggling to find the best mechanism to deliver development to our sport and today our National Federations have given us a concrete solution.”

“I would like to congratulate the FEI on this exceptional initiative,” IOC President Jacques Rogge commented. “FEI Solidarity, following the example of Olympic Solidarity, will be providing assistance to the national equestrian federations, particularly to those with the greatest needs, so that they can develop their own potential and expand the sport in their country. This shows how committed the FEI is to the global future of equestrian sport and I am confident that the newly created FEI Solidarity will be very successful.”

The objectives of the programmes put in place by FEI Solidarity are, among others:
• to assist the National Federations in the preparation of their athletes for participation in FEI competitions;
• to develop the sports knowledge and technical level of athletes and coaches;
• to train sports administrators;
• to create, where needed, simple, functional and economical equestrian sports facilities in cooperation with national or international bodies;
• to support the organisation of competitions at national, regional and continental level under the authority or patronage of the National Federations and to assist the National Federations in the organisation, preparation and participation of their delegations in regional and continental games;
• to encourage joint bilateral or multilateral cooperation programmes among National Federations;
• to urge governments and international organisations to include equestrian sport in official development assistance.

These programmes will be administered by the FEI Solidarity Committee which is composed of representatives from each of the nine FEI Geographical Groups. The FEI Solidarity Committee, which will be chaired by the FEI President, is made up of the following members which were appointed today:

Group I: Mr Armagan OZGORKEY, President TUR NF
Group II : Mr Jukka-Pekka LESKINEN, President FIN NF
Group EEA : Mr Sergey MASLOV, President RUS NF
Group IV: Mr John RALSTON, President JAM NF
Group V: Dr Jorge BERGANZA, President MEX NF
Group VI: Gloria de Cuesta, President ECU NF
Group VII: HRH Princess Haya (Chair), FEI President
Group VIII: Dr Melanie CHEW, President General SIN
Group IX: Mr Ibrahima WADE, President SEN NF