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WORLD MOUNTAIN RUNNING ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER 2017 Issue 22 • April 2017 Sarah Kistner (GER) Joel Ayeko (UGA) Junior Women Junior Men World Champion 2016 World Champion 2016 Andrea Mayr (AUT) Joseph Gray (USA) Senior Women Senior Men World Champion 2016 World Champion 2016 ALB AnD AUS AUT BEL BLR BUL CAn COL CRO CZE DEn FRA GBR GER HUn IRL ISR ITA KEn JPn LIE MEX MKD MLT MOn nED nOR nZL POL POR ROU RUS SLO SMR SRB SUI SVK SWE TUR UGA USA UKR Message from Bruno GOZZELINO – WMRA President 2017 will be an important year of my life. WMRA always worked respecting all the values of the sport, fighting I am 61 years old (born 7 October 1955) and hard against doping for example! more than two thirds of my life was dedicated to Also legal aspects were implemented: now WMRA has a legal Bruno Gozzelino the sport and to the athletics and more than half headquarters in Monte Carlo and this aspect is very important too, of my life was dedicated to mountain running. with a WMRA Constitution approved not only by WMRA but also by In fact, I started to organise mountain Monegasque State. races in 1984 and following in Susa Valley, WMRA is not a rich Association analysing with Atletica Susa and its President, financial economic aspect but – thanking Adriano Aschieris, who passed away on all the people who work for WMRA – we February 2017. are able to do a lot of activities: in any In 1980 I organised a Seminary in case WMRA in not in deficit, but have Bardonecchia (Turin) about mountain some money at disposal for the future! running with the presence of the – at this But I never forgot that Mountain Running time - IAAF President, Primo Nebiolo. is a branch of athletics and this wonderful In 1992 I was General Secretary of LOC discipline underlines some important of the 7th ICMR World Mountain Running aspects of the sport and of the life. Trophy held in Susa Valley. Mountain running is very useful to Then in Upice in 1997 I was elected develop athletics in parts of the world WMRA General Secretary and I worked where there is no stadium: young people on this job for 12 years together with can run in the nature and later these Danny Hughes WMRA President. When Bruno Gozzelino, WMRA President, and athletes will be able to compete on track Danny died in 2009, I became the Pierre Weiss, WMRA Secretary and field events or other classic athletic acting President; then I was elected Photo by Nancy Hobbs competitions such as marathons. WMRA President during the Congress at In addition, Mountain Running is a Madesimo (ITA) in the same year and I was confirmed in this role sport that respects environment and that is very useful for touristic during the Congress at Krynica Zdrój (POL) in 2013 and I worked in promotion of wonderful places in the world! this position until 2017. Of course, a lot has been achieved and there is still lots to achieve! I was very lucky for having on my side, as WMRA Secretary French For example, promote more of our discipline, especially through Pierre Weiss and a group of good media, press and television! persons as WMRA Council members. One other aspect regards marketing: to This long period of my life was full find sponsors would be very useful and of success and satisfaction not only interesting for our sport! personally but in particular for the Finally, last goal after a long way to cross discipline of mountain running. over would be to increase more in order In particular, the discipline has developed to obtain numbers and titles for asking in all aspects. the inclusion of this discipline among the For example, the number of the affiliated competition in the Olympic Games! National Federations: the target of 50 These are not easy steps but next Nations is reasonable and could be generation must push in this direction, reached very soon! without forgetting that other new The number of runners and their standing disciplines are coming in the athletics have also increased considerably: this family, such as trail. means of course that coaches also have On this side, another important message improved their activity in this kind of From left: Thomas Bach (GER), IOC President, from my point of view is: officials of athletics. Bruno Gozzelino (ITA), WMRA President mountain running must protect the One of the most important goals of and Sebastion Coe (GBR), IAAF President identity of mountain running. Our my activity has been the title of “World Photo by Patrizia Longo beautiful discipline must be not Mountain Running Championships” confused with ultradistance, trail, or that now is normally used: instead in the past, the more important similar parts of athletics. mountain running event was called for many years “World Mountain The actual rule 251 inside IAAF Handbook is very clear and Running Trophy”. important: losing these clear regulations would mean to lose the Another important aspect is the excellent identity of our discipline! relations that WMRA has with: I wish to thank many people that have • the IAAF and all the six Continental worked together with me during these many Associations; years starting from my national Federation, • a lot of National Athletic Federations FIDAL, until IAAF and EAA. worldwide; Personally, I would like to pay a special • all the other Associations operating in the tribute to Pierre Weiss, without adding athletics Family, such as WMA, IAU, BAF, words because all know that he is a fantastic AASSE, CISM … person in the athletics world. • many LOC of mountain races worldwide. I am ready for new experiences: I love sport, Many things were made and actually WMRA specially athletics, I hope to have again the has four important annual competitions: possibility for offering my activity and my • the World Mountain Running person to this wonderful sport, eventually in Championships; different position! • the Youth International Cup (for 16 and 17 WMRA Council I am sure that during these years, I made years old); Photo by Nancy Hobbs all my best for the mountain running and for • the Masters World Mountain Running athletics and now time has arrived because Championships (organised with WMA); new energy enters in this word for promoting more mountain races. • the World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships, Good luck to everybody, but – please – don’t forget: the mountain Plus, every year, a WMRA Cup (a circuit of 5-6 international races) race has its own soul that must not be lost! and some Area Continental Championships and other international competition. 2 Message from Message from Sebastian COE – Carlos CARDOSO – IAAF President Chairman IAAF Cross Country Committee The world of mountain running is becoming The year two thousand and sixteen will remain ever more established as an elite international Sebastian Coe as one of the most diffi cult of the history of our Carlos Cardoso athletics discipline. Not only were 323 athletes Photo by IAAF sport but on the other hand the one in which from 35 nations attracted to compete at the fundamental and important steps forward 2016 WMRA World Mountain Running Championships in Sapareva were rendered towards the modernisation of athletics. Organised Banya, Bulgaria last September, 10 of those teams won medals. athletics were born one hundread years ago when on the follow up The growing international spread of success across the four races, of the the great success of the 1912 Stockholm Olympic Games, each with individual and team competitions, was further witnessed IAAF was founded. We survived two World wars being even a crucial as six countries from four continents heard their national anthems stronghold for the support of the olympic movement in which we played at the championships. were and continue to be the number one sport. All over 2016 not one Mountain running has an international calendar which is fast of us had any doubts that we would overcome the serious challenges developing to match its international reach. As well as the World faced by our sport since the end of 2015 and that athletics would Mountain Running Championships, the WMRA 2017 calendar recover the leading sport position. also includes long distance mountain running and masters’ The recent IAAF Extraordinary Congress in which the proposals for championships, a 7 event world cup series, a youth cup competition, a deep change on the IAAF Constitution and consequently on the and area championships. daily management of our association were overwelming accepted The 33rd WMRA World Mountain Running Championships which will reinstating on all of us in athletics the belief that the diffi cult moments be staged in Premana, Italy on 30th July, will be the highlight of 2017. are almost over and the credibility recently shaked will be very soon They mark a change from tradition as the annual championships fully reinstated and diffused all over the world. have previously always taken place in either September or October. While those fundamental changes were prepared, athletes on It’s generally a time of change for Mountain Running. The 2016 track, road, cross or mountain conducted us to watch extraordinary WMRA Congress which was held in Sapareva Banya approved the performances and consequently outstanding results. Athletics were guaranteed representation of at least one woman on the WMRA after all alive! Council, equal race distances for men and women and changes to In fact two thousand sixteen was another year of sucess for mountain the make-up of teams in terms of scoring and non-scoring members running a sport that we continously watch groing year after year at future mountain running championships.