IOA says its move to run ski sport till elections approved by FIS

The Indian Olympic Association today said that its recent decision to appoint an ad hoc body to run ski and snowboard in the country has got a stamp of approval from the international parent body of the sport.

The IOA said the matter was discussed in the meeting of the International Ski Federation (FIS) Council during the FIS Congress held in Costa Navarino in Greece from May 13-19.

"The IOA was assigned as the governing body for the sport until the next election of the Winter Games Federation of India (WGFI) was held as per the norms of the Sports Code and the IOA Constitution," the IOA said in a statement.

WGFI, established in 1984, was for long perceived as the governing body for all winter sports. But over time, separate National Sports Federations have been formed for all Olympic winter sports and WGFI was reduced as the governing body for only ski and snowboard with affiliation to International Ski Federation (FIS).

The last election of WGFI was held in 2014. Within months the Sports Ministry ruled that the polls were not conducted according to the provisions of the National Sports Development Code of 2011.

In 2017, the Sports Ministry de-recognized WGFI for failing to comply with the directive to conduct another election.

The lack of a functioning NSF took a toll on the athletes. In January this year, a FIS international competition that was to be held in India was cancelled.

At the Winter Olympics in February, more chaos followed as cross country skier Jagdish Singh's participation was thrown into jeopardy after ambiguity crept into the choice of coaches permitted to accompany him to the Games in Pyeongchang.

In a bid to resolve the logjam, the IOA formed a six-member Ad-Hoc Committee in February with Rakesh Sharma, a retired IAS officer, as its convenor for interim governance of ski and snowboard until institutional reform and new elections are completed.

This initiative of the IOA was approved by the FIS in its recent Congress.

"We sincerely appreciate that the Indian Olympic Association will ensure that ski and snowboard activities in and with the participation of Indian representation and most especially that the athletes are able to continue their participation in international competitions," the FIS said in a letter to the IOA.

A formal ratification of the FIS decision is expected during the meeting of the Executive Council of IOA on June 2 here.

Winter sports in India had received a boost at the start of the year when on January 13 Aanchal Thakur won the country's first ever international medal in skiing.

The 21-year-old's bronze medal in the Alpine Ejder 3200 Cup organised by FIS at the Palandoken Ski Centre in Erzurum in Turkey was a significant moment in the history of winter sports in the country, the IOA said.