Host City, renowned for the highest level of speakers and content, is excelling itself at this year’s event with an unprecedented level and diversity of representation from the world’s greatest event owners, organisers and hosts.

In addition to great content, the digital platform enables all the other hallmarks of Host City – world class networking, and an exhibition of events, hosts and expert suppliers.

Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events, VisitScotland and Bridget McConnell CBE, Chief Executive, Glasgow Life open proceedings addressing the conference theme, The Big Restart: Hosting with a Purpose for the Digital Age. Further keynotes follow from Sir Craig Reedie GBE, Member, International Olympic Committee (IOC) and Etienne Thobois CEO Paris 2024 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The opening session also stars Roxana Mărăcineanu, Minister of Sports, France, Ian Reid, CEO, Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, Khunying Patama Leeswadtrakul, IOC Member and Vice President, Badminton World Federation and Fanta Diallo, Director of Sports, Youth and Community, City of Dakar.

The world’s two biggest sports events go head to head at Host City with Georgina Grenon, Director of Environmental Excellence, Paris 2024 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games and Federico Addiechi, Head of Sustainability and Environment, FIFA discussing how major events are contributing to environmental goals. Tim Briercliffe, Secretary General, International Association of Horticultural Producers will also share his perspective on greening cities.

Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Director Tatsuo Ogura will give an update on preparations to host the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Brian Lewis, President, Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee and Densign White, Chair, Sporting Equals tackle another dominating issue of 2020: the impact of the Black Lives Matter movement, while Sabrina Ibanez, President of the Association of Paralympic Sports Associations leads the panel on inclusion and diversity.

Day Two kicks off with a keynote speech from Sir Russell Coutts KNZM CBE, CEO, SailGP.

World Athletics is well represented at Host City 2020 by CEO Jon Ridgeon and Jakob Larsen, Director of Competition and Events. Niels de Vos, CEO Oregon 21 LLC is also giving an insight into preparations for the upcoming World Athletics Championships.

With digitalisation accelerating rapidly, Bruno Marie-Rose, Director of Technology Paris 2024 Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Michael Cole Chief Technology Officer European Tour and Alban Dechelotte, Head of Sponsorship & Business Development EU Esport, Riot Games share views on future event delivery and the convergence of digital and real-world events.

Other great speakers include John Langford, Chief Operating Officer, AEG Europe, Michelle Hooper, Tournament Director Rugby World Cup New Zealand 2021, Michael D'hulst Co-Founder & CEO Super League Triathlon.

Major congresses are well represented by Aileen Crawford of Glasgow Convention Bureau, Emily Blitz of the International AIDS Society, Sven Bossu, CEO of the International Association of Convention Centres (AIPC) and Aoife Delmas of the European Society of Cardiology.

Other participating organisations include Aggreko, Department for International Trade, Sport Event Denmark, Global Esports Federation, European Sponsorship Association, International Association of Event Hosts, Association of Global Event Suppliers and many more to be announced.

Speakers, sponsors and exhibitors have access to invitation-only VIP structured networking.

Host City is the largest meeting of cities and sports, business and cultural events. To exhibit contact adam.soroka@cavendishgroup.co.uk. For speaking opportunities contact ben.avison@hostcity.com

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach and SportAccord and the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) President Dr. Raffaele Chiulli are among the high-profile speakers who will participate in the fully virtual International Federation (IF) Forum 2020, which kicks off tomorrow.

The IOC President’s Welcome Remarks will be streamed online before Dr. Tedros, a leading figure in the global response to the Covid-19 pandemic, delivers a Keynote Address on the theme of the conference – ‘How Sport and Society Can Emerge Stronger from a Global Crisis’.

There will also be an Opening Address by Dr. Raffaele Chiulli, President of SportAccord and the GAISF, and a Member Keynote Address by Professor Fabio Pigozzi, President of the International Federation of Sports Medicine (FIMS).

Oscar Tosato, Municipal Councillor Sport and Social Cohesion at the City of Lausanne, will also provide a Host Welcome, while Evgeny Kuivashev, Governor of the Russian Federation’s Sverdlovsk Region, will deliver a SportAccord 2021 Host Address to give delegates a taste of what to expect at next year’s highly anticipated SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit in Ekaterinburg.

All of the IF Forum sessions will be streamed online for participants, with SportAccord having adopted a fully virtual format for the event due to ongoing challenges in relation to international travel and in-person gatherings in the context of the pandemic.

Topics that will be debated will include crisis management, scenario planning, how to limit risk from a legal and financial perspective, law-related commercial considerations for IFs and how to stay connected and reassure athletes, fans and stakeholders in times of adversity.

Experts from companies such as Charles Russell Speechlys, Leidar, MARSH, MGO Events, OnePlan, and SKIDATA will provide essential insights. The packed conference programme will also feature contributions from representatives of the IOC, as well as numerous IFs, including Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), Union Internationale Motonautique (UIM), International Ski Federation (FIS), World Federation of the Sporting Goods Industry (WFSGI), World Association of Kickboxing Organizations (WAKO), International Floorball Federation (IFF), World Taekwondo (WT), World Archery (WA), World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) and World Rugby.

The invitation-only IF Forum 2020 will bring together more than 200 leaders from over 125 International Sports Federations, with delegates, and speakers.

Dr. Chiulli said: “In these unusual and challenging times it is more important than ever for International Sport Federations to come together, and we have an outstanding line-up of influential speakers who will provide essential insights during this first fully virtual IF Forum. I am delighted with the SportAccord team’s efforts in preparing for this year’s event in this exciting format that will connect our community from across the globe.”

For further information about the IF Forum, click here or download the brochure here, and follow #IFFORUM2020 on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.

For media enquiries, please contact: media@sportaccord.sport

[Source: SportAccord] The Sports Bureau of Macau SAR Government has renewed its long-running Gold Partner status at SportAccord’s World Sport & Business Summit for the 2021 edition of the international sports movement’s most influential global gathering in Ekaterinburg, Russia.

The Sports Bureau of Macao SAR Government has an established presence at SportAccord’s flagship annual gathering, having supported the event since the 2008 edition in Athens, Greece.

As a Gold Partner once again next year, the Sports Bureau will be provided with a prestigious platform for connecting with sport’s most influential decision-makers who will come together for a week of high-level meetings, engaging conferences and a bustling exhibition, from 23-28 May 2021.

The Sports Bureau seeks to promote sport at all levels with athletes and citizens alike. It focuses on creating the necessary conditions for the development of sport and plays an active role between sports associations, as well as encouraging citizens to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Nis Hatt, Managing Director, SportAccord, said: “The Sports Bureau of Macao SAR Government’s unwavering support illustrates the organisation’s commitment, not only to SportAccord and the World Sport & Business Summit, but also to staying at the forefront of the international sporting community’s minds with their continued involvement and support.”

Pun Weng Kun, President of the Sports Bureau of Macao SAR Government added: “We are honoured to return again as one of the Gold Partners for the SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit 2021 in Ekaterinburg. We look forward to enhancing Macau’s profile as an active sport city, making contributions to the positive growth and development in the global sport industry and being a significant part of the success of the event.”

The annual World Sport & Business Summit is a six-day event attended by leaders of the global sports community. As the only global sports industry event attended by all International Sport Federations and their stakeholders, SportAccord also brings together organising committees, hosting cities and regions, governments and administrations, rights-holders, agencies and athletes, as well as top-level experts and organisations from the sports media, technology, investment, medical and legal sectors.

The conference programme will feature six streams – CityAccord, HealthAccord, LawAccord, MediaAccord, the SportAccord Summit, and the new InvestAccord – with numerous influential speakers set to offer unmissable insights into a variety of vital areas in sport.

Registration is open for the SportAccord World Sport & Business Summit 2021 in Ekaterinburg.

Situated on the banks on the Iset River, Ekaterinburg is Russia’s fourth-largest city by population, and is a hotspot for tourism and business, as well as sport, as the home to numerous professional teams.

Organisations interested in becoming an official partner or exhibitor can contact SportAccord to discuss these investment opportunities by emailing sales@sportaccord.sport, with SportAccord also offering an interactive exhibition floorplan and 3-D flyover of the SportAccord 2021 exhibition space.

You can follow SportAccord’s portfolio of events via Twitter @sportaccord or keep up-to-date via LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and Flickr.

[Source: SportAccord] Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO), will be a Keynote Speaker at the fully virtual International Federation (IF) Forum 2020 next month, SportAccord has confirmed.

Dr. Tedros, who has been a prominent figure in the international response to the Covid-19 pandemic, will deliver a Keynote Address on the theme of the conference – ‘How Sport and Society Can Emerge Stronger from a Global Crisis’.

Having been elected to serve a five-year term at the helm by WHO Member States in 2017, Dr. Tedros is globally recognised as a health scholar, researcher and diplomat with first-hand experience in research, operations and leadership in emergency responses to epidemics.

The Keynote Address will follow a Welcome Address by International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach and an Opening Address by Dr. Raffaele Chiulli, President of SportAccord.

Dr Tedros said: “Sport plays a vital role in our closely connected global community, bringing joy, teamwork, peace and ways to promote the physical and mental health for people of all walks of life.”

“But like many other areas of life, COVID-19 has also turned the sporting world upside down, forcing to us to find new ways to enable people to participate in their favourite sports, while keeping them safe in the process. WHO has been working closely with sporting federations during these challenging times to assess the risks associated with COVID-19 to protect the health of players, staff and fans. We will continue working with you to bring sports back on line safely for all.”

Dr. Chiulli added: “We are very excited to be welcoming Dr. Tedros to the IF Forum. He has played an incredibly important role in the global Covid-19 challenge presented to all of us – including the international sports movement – and we are delighted that he will join us virtually to provide unmissable insights into the role sport can play in helping to drive the broader recovery of society as we hope to move on from the turbulence of this year.”

All of the IF Forum sessions will be streamed online, with SportAccord having adopted a fully virtual format for the event due to ongoing challenges in relation to international travel and in-person gatherings in the context of the pandemic.

More than 30 expert speakers have been lined up to participate in the conference programme. During the packed conference schedule, a range of experts will discuss strategies to drive the recovery of sport following the pandemic whilst establishing game plans that sports leaders can put in place to mitigate challenges that may arise from possible unforeseen disruptions in the future.

Topics that will be debated will include crisis management, scenario planning, how to limit risk from a legal and financial perspective, law-related commercial considerations for IFs and how to stay connected and reassure athletes, fans and stakeholders in times of adversity. 

The invitation-only IF Forum 2020 will bring together more than 200 leaders from over 125 International Sports Federations, with delegates, and speakers.

For further information about the IF Forum, click here or download the brochure here, and follow #IFFORUM2020 on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr.

[Source: SailGP, October 22, 2020] Following the announcement of its Race for the Future purpose-led agenda aimed at accelerating change to a cleaner and more inclusive future, SailGP today rolled out its first major diversity, equity and inclusion initiative. The global championship has launched an extensive program to fast-track the training and development of female athletes for participation in SailGP.

SailGP CEO Sir Russell Coutts said: “We acknowledge that there is work to be done in order to make our organization and this sport more inclusive, and we are fully committed to addressing the need to accelerate change. As we have quickly progressed to become the pinnacle global league for the sport, it has also become abundantly clear that this opportunity should be afforded to as wide a group of athletes as possible.

“Fast, foiling boats – including our F50 catamarans – are now rightfully at the center of high-performance sail racing, however, the majority of that racing has been predominantly male-driven, resulting in an experience gap among genders. All genders can, and should, be equal in this sport, and we must therefore provide the opportunity necessary to close that gap. It is imperative that we break existing boundaries in the sport to create a more inclusive environment overall.”

SailGP’s immediate focus is the advancement of gender equity and racial diversity, with the longer-term goal to ensure the league is more accessible for all underrepresented groups.

To guide the process, SailGP has been working with diversity and inclusion consultancy the Clear Company throughout the last four months, while also establishing two working committees. The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee – which includes 75 percent membership from underrepresented groups – is driving the holistic inclusion of women and racially diverse individuals across the organization, while the Women’s Committee – made up of a cross-section of internal and external expertise, including more than 80 percent women – is supporting the initial female athlete integration process.

In early November, SailGP will host the first in a series of women’s invitational camps that will eventually be conducted in each team market – Australia, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Japan, New Zealand, Spain and the United States – to engage with female athletes who meet the league’s overall selection criteria.

From there, 16 women will be invited to participate in SailGP’s pre-season training camp early next year. Ultimately, at least one female athlete will be selected to train and be immersed within each team for Season 2, which is set to begin in April 2021.

The first season of the gender equity initiative will serve as a pilot program, and will include regular evaluation and adjustments to ensure a successful integration process. Overall, the program will aim to train top female sailors to be competitive in the positions of helm, flight controller or wing trimmer onboard the F50 race boats.

SailGP Women’s Committee member Carolijn Brouwer, a three-time Olympian who has also competed in The Ocean Race three times and been named World Sailor of the year twice, said: “This is a big step forward for women in professional sailing. SailGP is accelerating the inclusion and creating the opportunity for high-performance female sailors to compete alongside their male peers in the world's most advanced sailing league. This type of initiative will allow us to achieve true gender equity in the future.”

A dedicated women’s program manager, to be in place by January 2021, will oversee this initiative.

Additional focus will be placed on creating a more racially diverse profile for SailGP – and ultimately the sport – beginning at the grassroots and junior levels. The league will work in partnership with World Sailing, National Sailing Federations, and local sailing clubs and programs to provide opportunities to young people from a variety of backgrounds through its community outreach program, SailGP Inspire.

Gender-balanced from its inception, SailGP Inspire will provide an important pathway for young female sailors to receive training, coaching and competitive racing in WASZP foiling boats. In addition, SailGP Inspire will now add focus to offering additional entry points to both recreational and competitive sailing for racially and socioeconomically diverse youth.

Further information on the relaunch of SailGP Inspire will be announced by the end of the year.

World Sailing Head of Sustainability Dan Reading said: "We commend SailGP, the first signatory of our Special Event Sustainability Charter, for taking a leadership role in sustainable development. We look forward to working with the championship to close the participation gap among underrepresented groups and engage with a wider demographic working with the World Sailing Trust."

Additional information regarding SailGP’s diversity strategy, including internal policies and procedures aimed at cultivating an equitable and inclusive culture, can be found here.

[Source: Commonwealth Games Federation] The BBC has signed up to be the Domestic Broadcast Rights Holder for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

The deal means the corporation will broadcast Birmingham 2022 events on television and radio and provide online coverage for the home nations, offering unparalleled coverage of the UK’s largest sporting event since the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The BBC has a long and proud association with the Commonwealth Games which dates back to 1954. With the longstanding history between the BBC and the Games, the organisation will bring an unrivalled experience of covering Birmingham 2022.

The deal marks a particularly significant moment as 2022 coincides with the BBC’s own centenary celebrations. The partnership also reinforces the BBC’s longstanding connection with Birmingham and the Midlands, as one of the oldest regional arms of the broadcaster.

The announcement comes on the day that Birmingham 2022 unveiled the Games’ medal event programme, confirming that the competition will be the first major multi-sport event in history to award more medals to women than men.

In addition, Birmingham 2022 will host the largest ever integrated para sport programme, as well as a record number of mixed events including diving, swimming relays and para-athletics relays.

The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games will be held from 28 July until 8 August 2022.

Commonwealth Games Federation President Dame Louise Martin DBE said: “I am delighted that the BBC has taken up the domestic rights for the Commonwealth Games.

I believe this deal represents a huge vote of confidence in Birmingham as well as the entire Commonwealth Sport Movement.

We anticipate some of the world's highest profile athletes will compete at Birmingham, which will be an historic event for women’s sport, with more medals for women than men.

The BBC has demonstrated a huge commitment to women’s sport and with 2022 marking their centenary, I am delighted they are partnering again with Commonwealth Sport to help us generate huge levels of excitement and anticipation in the lead up to one of the biggest sporting events the UK has ever have hosted.

I am thrilled that the BBC will once again connect millions of viewers to the drama and excitement of the Commonwealth Games, bringing their world class production and analysis to homes and handsets across the UK.”

Tim Davie, Director-General of the BBC, said: “In a year when many major sport events have been postponed, this is welcome news for sports fans.

We are delighted to be broadcasting the Commonwealth Games.”

Birmingham 2022 CEO Ian Reid said: “This is a significant moment for Birmingham 2022 and we are very proud to be working with the BBC as the Domestic Broadcast Rights Holder for the Games.

The BBC’s record in covering major sports events is truly outstanding and we can’t wait to work with them on our edition of the Commonwealth Games.

Birmingham 2022 is the biggest sporting event to be staged in the UK since the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games and the BBC is the perfect broadcaster to showcase our 19 sports and 8 para sports, the majority of which will be held in venues across Birmingham and the West Midlands, ensuring that the city and the region will be truly centre stage in 2022.”

Oliver Dowden, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport said: "This is another significant step towards the successful delivery of Birmingham 2022. It will be a fantastic year of culture and national celebration as we enjoy the Commonwealth Games, the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and Festival UK.

“I am delighted that the BBC will continue its long-standing heritage of broadcasting the Games, and I look forward to watching every moment of the action.”

[Source: Global Esports Federation] The Global Esports Federation announces the appointment of Sports Innovation Lab as Global Supporter, aimed at further enhancing the GEF’s mission to promote the credibility, legitimacy and prestige of esports. Through this global partnership, Sports Innovation Lab will develop the GEF’s global events portfolio, including the landmark GEFcon – the Global Esports Federation’s convention, thought-leadership and dialogue platform.

“We are proud to welcome Sports Innovation Lab as our Global Supporter in an effort to deepen our involvement with the stakeholders in esports, including fans worldwide on one global, inclusive platform,” said Chris Chan, President, Global Esports Federation.

“As the world’s convening platform for the esports ecosystem, engagement with players and athletes, as well as fans is paramount,” said HRH Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, Head of GEF’s Focus Group on Culture and Board Member, Global Esports Federation. “We continue to work towards elevating esports in the global arena, encouraging greater inclusion, interaction and participation within the world’s esports community,”

Sports Innovation Lab inspires brands to create breakthrough fan experiences through data-driven technology insights and industry-leading research – putting ground-breaking research into practice and ultimately providing exponential value to the end customer (the Fluid Fan).

“Sports Innovation Lab is honored to be named as a Global Supporter of the Global Esports Federation. We look forward to applying to the esports space and this partnership with the GEF the expertise and insights we’ve gained from our experiences in working with world-class organizations like the NFL and others,” said Angela Ruggiero, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Sports Innovation Lab.

“Together, we will create and scale breakthrough fan experiences for esports globally to benefit the entire esports ecosystem.”

Sports Innovation Lab is co-founded by Angela Ruggiero, a global sports leader and Olympic Gold Medallist, advocate, entrepreneur, and advisor; and Josh Walker, former VP of Research at Forrester Research and Entrepreneur-in-Residence at General Catalyst. Learn more about Sports Innovation Lab at www.sportsilab.com.

[Source: British Rowing] British Rowing is delighted to announce that analytics leader SAS will continue to provide its world-leading analytics solutions to British Rowing until December 2021 through the rearranged Olympic and Paralympic Games next summer.

SAS will work with British Rowing to develop powerful data solutions across the business including the GB Rowing Team, as well as investing in grassroots rowing. Since becoming the Official Analytics Partner of British Rowing in 2014, SAS has helped British Rowing maximise the use of data to inform decisions across the whole organisation.

Commenting on the extension of the partnership, Andy Parkinson, British Rowing CEO said: “In challenging times for the sport, it’s fantastic that SAS has agreed to continue its support beyond the Olympics and Paralympics next year. Through this partnership, we’ve been able to significantly accelerate our understanding of our data and build infrastructure that is now helping us make decisions and optimise our long-term strategy.”

Charles Senabulya, VP & Country Manager, SAS UK & Ireland, said: “We’re delighted to continue our support for British Rowing in what are extremely challenging times for all organisations. Coaches and athletes have had to adapt, just like businesses, to remote training away from the water and communicating virtually rather than face-to-face. On a positive note the postponement of the Olympics and Paralympics until next year at least gives British Rowing more time to use analytics to uncover important insights from performance data.

Through the partnership, SAS’ advanced analytics software and consultancy are being used across broad areas of the business including membership analysis, competition ranking algorithms (the SAS Ranking Points Index) and performance data analysis. In recent years, significant progress has been made in building data-led models of performance data, helping British Rowing better understand the precise factors that can influence and affect an individual’s performance.

Nick Scott, Head of Performance Support explained how the partnership is helping the GB Rowing Team: “Rowing is an incredibly data-rich sport, but just having lots of data does not mean you will automatically find the next competitive advantage. With this latest SAS project, we are using advanced analytics to link and interrogate never before combined data sources to do two things - confirm what has made us successful in the past and find novel ways of optimising our training for the future.”

Taking place in Glasgow and across Scotland in August 2023, the Championships is set to be the biggest single cycling event in history, bringing together 13 existing individual World Championship cycling disciplines into one mega event, for the first time.

The Championships is more than just an event and will celebrate the unique power of the bike and all it can bring to our everyday lives, whether it’s physical and mental health benefits, easing congestion on the road to help the environment, or simply making it easier for people to get around.

Underpinned by four key policy drivers - participation, transport, tourism and economy - the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships will be a catalyst for behavioural change across Scotland moving forward.

Trudy’s strong background and experience working on complex large-scale major events, designed to support government ambitions to deliver social and economic change, makes her the ideal person for the job.

Currently the Head of Event Management at Visit Victoria, Trudy will bring a wealth of event experience to the position having spent more than 20 years leading, planning and delivering major events in Australia and around the world, working with government’s, local organising committees, event hosts and international and national sports federations in the process.

In particular, her work on cycling events spans over twelve years and includes senior roles at the 2010 UCI Road World Championships, the 2012 UCI Track Cycling World Championships as well as Cycling Australia. 

More recently she has spent over seven years working for one of the world’s leading events acquisition groups, Victorian Major Events Company (VMEC), now Visit Victoria, and was  pivotal in the establishment of the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race in 2015, now the opening one-day race on the UCI WorldTour and UCI Women's WorldTour calendars.

Trudy also has a strong cultural events background, taking over the reins of the all-night festival ‘White Night Melbourne’ in 2017 and overseeing the creation of supporting regional White Night events.

As CEO of the Championships, Trudy will have overall executive responsibility for the planning and delivery of the event. She will report directly to the Chair of Championships Board and will manage all the senior management positions including the Director of Sport, Director of Operations and Director of Commercial, Marketing and Communications currently being recruited. Trudy will take up her position on 26 October 2020 and will relocate to Glasgow with her family from Melbourne, Australia.

Paul Bush OBE, Chair of 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships, said: “On behalf of all the partners, I would like to congratulate Trudy on her appointment as CEO of the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships and we look forward to welcoming her to Scotland very soon. This is another key milestone on our journey to the Championships and concludes a global search, much of which was undertaken at the height of the coronavirus pandemic.

“Trudy’s vast event experience, particularly in delivering both UCI and mass participation cycling events, makes her the ideal candidate to establish and lead the Championships team. We have a bold ambition to use the event as a catalyst for significant change and progress in Scotland, by continuing to transform the nation and make cycling part of people’s normal, everyday lives and Trudy is the right person to help us achieve this.”

Trudy Lindblade said: “Playing a leading role in such an innovative and unique event will be a wonderful opportunity. This is particularly so as the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships will be the single biggest global cycling event to date, and one that has transformational change at its core bringing longer term benefits to Scotland through the areas of health, transport, education, sustainability and tourism.

“I look forward to working with all Event Partners as well as local towns and regions to showcase Scotland’s world class event delivery and tourism credentials to the world through the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships.”

Trudy’s appointment follows last week’s announcement of the five Non-Executive Directors and one Co-opted member to join the Championships Board of Directors. 

Rupert Dickinson, Alexandra Innes, David Hornby, Nick Peel and Susan Ahern have all taken up their roles as Non-Executive Directors on the Board, while five-times BMX and Track Cycling World Champion, Shanaze Reade, will also be joining the Board this month as a Co-Opted Board Member.

The International Federation (IF) Forum, the annual event that brings together leaders from across the global sporting community, will be hosted by SportAccord in a fully virtual format next month.

In light of the challenges in relation to international travel and in-person gatherings in the context of the pandemic, the decision to switch to a fully virtual format was taken in order to give delegates sufficient time to adjust their plans ahead of the event in November.

With preparations having already focused on optimising the experience for virtual attendees as part of what was initially planned to be a ‘hybrid’ gathering, SportAccord is committed to delivering an outstanding experience for all participants, connecting the sporting world via technology, with all of the sessions streamed live online.

SportAccord President Raffaele Chiulli said: “The SportAccord team has worked incredibly hard to facilitate a solution that would allow the IF Forum to be held in a hybrid format as intended but, due to the evolving situation, this is no longer appropriate.”

“While we will not gather together in-person this year, the strong programme and line-up of contributors means that the IF Forum will be a vital signpost for the global sports movement as the dust settles on a turbulent 2020 and thoughts turn to a brighter future.”

“All of sport’s custodians and decision-makers have an important part to play in coming together to inspire positive change whilst safeguarding against future challenges, and the IF Forum 2020 will serve as an essential starting point.”

Experts will discuss strategies to drive the recovery of sport following the Covid-19 pandemic whilst establishing game plans that sports leaders can put in place to mitigate challenges that may arise from possible unforeseen disruptions in the future.

Topics that will be debated will include crisis management, scenario planning, how to limit risk from a legal and financial perspective, law-related commercial considerations for IFs and how to stay connected and reassure athletes, fans and stakeholders in times of adversity.

The invitation-only IF Forum 2020 will bring together more than 200 leaders from over 100 International Sport Federations, with delegates, speakers and exclusive Official IF Forum Partners discussing best practices.

For further information about the IF Forum, click here or download the brochure here, and follow #IFFORUM2020 on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr.

For media enquiries, please contact: media@sportaccord.sport.