IWRF to establish Athletes Council

The International Wheelchair Rugby Federation (IWRF) hopes to get athletes more involved with the governance of their sport. 24 Apr 2013

Australia's Ryley Batt has arguably been deemed the top wheelchair rugby player in the world and led his team to gold at London 2012.

ⒸGetty

By IPC

The Council will be made up of current and former international wheelchair rugby athletes from all three zones, and will provide a forum for communication and consultation among athletes and the IWRF Board and its Standing Committees.

In an effort to ensure effective athlete representation at all levels, the International Wheelchair Rugby Federation (IWRF) announced that it will establish an Athletes Council in 2013.

The Council will be made up of current and former international wheelchair rugby athletes from all three zones, and will provide a forum for communication and consultation among athletes and the IWRF Board and its Standing Committees.

Ross Morrison, IWRF Athlete Representative and Board member, initiated the drive for the council in order to get more athletes directly involved with providing input on the game and contributing to the governance of their sport.

"Wheelchair Rugby continues to grow around the globe, and it's no longer efficient for the Athlete Representative to be the sole collector of information from those who play the game," Morrison told the IWRF.

"By having a minimum of two athletes from each zone sitting on this council, we will have a much broader view of the sport at all levels, which will allow us to better advise the IWRF Board and its various committees on what the athletes want and the game needs going forward.”

One of the goals of the IWRF's Strategic Plan is to ensure effective athlete representation at all levels of the organisation.

To help achieve this, elections will be held at each of the IWRF’s Zone Championships later this year where two athletes from each of the three zones will be elected to sit on the Athletes Council.

All athletes interested in contributing to the future direction of their sport are encouraged to download the IWRF Athletes Council terms of reference found at www.iwrf.com. Further details regarding elections and a formal call for nominations will be distributed later this month by the IWRF.