24 November 2006 - FITA Council very satisfied with 2006

FITA Council very satisfied with 2006 Lausanne, 24 November 2006  Led by FITA President Dr. Ugur Erdener (TUR), the FITA Council met in Istanbul on November 18-19th to review a very busy 2006 year and to look forward to an exciting future.   Archery World Cup 2006 and 75th Anniversary of FITA The Meteksan Archery World Cup had a great launch in 2006. It gave quality events to the top Archers and the year-long competition raised the media interest to Archery. With an estimated cumulative TV audience of 889’000’000 viewers and more than 15 TV channels showing highlights worldwide, FITA is very happy with the start of the World Cup. The schedule for 2007 will follow the same format with 4 stages and 1 Final in an extraordinary venue. FITA wishes to thank the on-going support of its sponsors: Meteksan Events, KIA Motors, Turkish Airlines, Balmain Swiss Watches and Swiss Timing.   The year 2006 was a true milestone for FITA for its 75th Anniversary. FITA moved to a new office at the International House of Sport and the opening festivities were a true success with the representatives of the Olympic Movement.   Key events in 2007 Beside the 2007 World Cup, the FITA Council was happy with the progress in the organization of the following key events:   Ø Indoor World Championships, Izmir (TUR), March 13-17 Ø World 3D Archery Championships, Sopron (HUN), June 6-10 Ø FITA Congress, Leipzig (GER), July 5-7 Ø Outdoor World Championships, Leipzig (GER), July 7-15 (main Olympic Qualifier) Ø Olympic Test Event, Beijing (CHN), August 20-26   The national and media interest is already rising in Germany about the Archery Outdoor World Championships in Leipzig. To ensure a smooth management of this event, FITA will launch an online accreditation system for the Archers and Teams with an innovative concept that will provide bonus or fines to avoid delays in the registration process.   FITA also discussed the A & B Field setup which was successfully tested in Porec this year and which will be implemented in Beijing. This means we will be able to show more Archers and Teams on TV during the Olympic Games on two fields. FITA has also agreed to advance its schedule for the Test Event in order to be part of a major test together with other sports.

Commonwealth Games in 2010 FITA Council was delighted to learn during the meeting that the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth Games Federation has accepted the request from the Indian Organizing Committee to add Archery to the program of the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi (IND). In total, 17 sports will now be on the program of the Games (please see related news).   The « Archery World Plan » for 2007-2012 The development of the Archery World Plan with TSE Consulting is following its course and will focus on five targets: Identity, Events, Promotions, Partnerships, Expansion. The goal will be to connect all the archery resources in order to get an even higher profile in the Olympic Movement. FITA is currently receiving feedback from all its Member Associations and the plan will forego a final consultative phase in early 2007. It will be then presented to the Congress in Leipzig.   In his remarks, President Erdener said: “I am very happy with the launch and the TV exposure of the Meteksan Archery World Cup in 2006. I am confident that our events in 2007 will satisfy an increasing number of fans and sponsors. The future Archery World Plan will ensure that we take good care of all the Archers in the world and that we keep raising the profile of Archery in the Olympic Movement”.   FITA will hold a Seminar for its future organizers in early December and announce the detailed World Cup schedule at this occasion.   Didier Miéville FITA Communication Director