Today at the Extraordinary FIS Congress, the delegates voted by the necessary 2/3 majority to adopt the revised FIS Statutes.

By a landslide vote of 106 to 3 (97%), the updated FIS Statutes were approved by the Member National Ski Associations.

New Statutes
The newly-adopted Statutes address several key areas, including placing term limits on Council members and the FIS President, bringing more gender equity to the FIS Council, further engagement in sustainability and giving FIS additional flexibility to adapt its rights structure.

“When I was elected president, ran on a campaign that promised change,” said FIS President Johan Eliasch. “Today, I am proud that, together with our Member National Associations, we reached another important milestone on this common and exciting path. With the adjustments to the FIS Statutes, we now have the framework to effectively and purposefully implement our vision and our goals.”

Eliasch continued, “there is a lot of work to do, but with such an emphatic voting result and the clear trust and support of our members I look forward to leading FIS into its next chapter.”

FIS Name Change
In another important decision, the Congress also voted to keep the name of the International Ski Federation, after two alternative names were put forward.

The two proposals were the International Ski and Snowboard Federation and the International Snowsports Federation. In an initial vote, the International Ski and Snowboard Federation topped the Snowsports alternative by a slim margin of 57-51.

In the second round of voting, which needed 2/3 majority approval, including the name snowboard in the official name did not receive the number of votes needed to reach the majority. While the snowboard alternative won the vote 66-49, it only earned 57% support.

“All three alternatives had my full support. Today, the members decided on the name they feel represents FIS best. But an important lesson learned today is that there is a desire from our stakeholders that we do a better job of being inclusive of all disciplines in our daily communication and promotion of FIS.” said FIS President Johan Eliasch.

The next FIS Congress will take place next Spring in Vilamoura (POR).