Page 19

FIFA OPENS WORLD FOOTBALL MUSEUMOn 28 February, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Football Museum was officially opened by the recently elected FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, accompanied by museum director Stefan Jost. The museum covers an area of 3,000m² and contains over 1,000 objects, 1,400 photos, 500 videos, 60 screens and 15 interactive stations. In March, IOC President Thomas Bach met with the FIFA President. They agreed to strengthen cooperation between the IOC and FIFA and work closely together on all questions of mutual interest.In March, United World Wrestling (UWW), in partnership with the World Academy of Sport, launched “Ready to Wrestle”, an online programme for sports fans interested in learning more about the history, rules, styles and traditions of international wrestling. The programme caters to students, athletes, coaches, referees, event organisers and those interested in testing their knowledge of wrestling and the Olympic Games. On 24-26 February, “Shuttle Time”, a schools development programme piloted by the Badminton World Federation (BWF), celebrated its 100th event in Panama. The Central American country welcomed the most recent event in the global grassroots initiative, which has succeeded in introducing badminton to all five continents. First piloted in Tonga in late 2011, Shuttle Time rapidly made its mark worldwide, and was embraced by BWF members as the primary means of growing the sport among schoolchildren. The programme allows teachers and instructors to develop their skills, knowledge and confidence to introduce badminton in a safe, fun and inclusive manner. The programme has been implemented in 17 countries in Africa, 25 countries in Asia, 27 in Europe, eight in Oceania and 23 in the Americas. The programme also incorporates partnerships with the IOC at its Sport for Hope Centres in Haiti and Zambia. The BWF has significantly exceeded its initial goal of establishing Shuttle Time in 30 countries by the end of 2015. BWFÕS ÔSHUTTLE TIMEÕ CELEBRATES 100TH EVENTUWW LAUNCHES ÔREADY TO WRESTLEÕ PROGRAMMEIAAF elects Athletes’ Commission chairThe Athletes’ Commission of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) has elected Rožle Prezelj as its new chairman. Prezelj represented Slovenia in the high jump at three Olympic Games and four world championships. He takes over as commission chair from Frank Fredericks with immediate effect. British marathon world record-holder Paula Radcliffe was appointed vice-chair of the commission.‘Table Tennis for NepALL’ launched on World Table Tennis DayThe International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) has announced that the centrepiece of World Table Tennis Day – the launch of the “Table Tennis for NepALL” project in Kathmandu – was a massive success, as large crowds turned out in Nepal’s capital on 6 April to celebrate table tennis. The project’s main aim is to develop table tennis among people with a disability in Nepal. The ceremony also inaugurated the newly renovated Para Table Tennis Training Centre in Kathmandu, which was damaged by last year’s earthquake.NEWS IN BRIEFAbove Ready to Wrestle will test fans’ knowledge of wrestling and the Olympic GamesAbove The FIFA World Football Museum in Zurich (Switzerland)OLYMPIC REVIEW 19