FAI - Annual Report 2014

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FAI ANNUAL REPORT–2014 1
President’s
Foreword
2014 has been exciting, interesting and satisfying. We
have seen thrilling competition, brilliant performances
and outstanding athletes. An increasing number of
women and juniors are attracted to our air sports and
there is expanding vitality in our activities, especially
in Asia.
We have had 60 world and continental championships in
2014–another record year! Amongst others, I was delighted
to follow the eight spellbinding competitions of the RedBull
Air Race, with which we were very pleased to renew our
partnership at the end of 2013. It is great to see such a
renowned world championship governed by FAI approved
sporting rules and to have the FAI Medals around the neck
of the racewinners. The race and the partnership continue
in 2015, which is wonderful news.
We are proud to have Breitling, the technical watch
specialist, as our official sponsor. Our collaboration has
evolved over the years, andBreitling is nowgranting support
and branding to selected FAI world championships, and
prestigious FAI-Breitling Awards have been established.
Recognising the men and women whose achievements
inspire new endeavours andmotivate new generations for
air sports is of great significance to our Federation. I had
the pleasure of presenting our medals and diplomas to the
most deserving of the aviation and space personalities at
our annual Awards Ceremony in Pattaya. Amongst them
was the pioneer of Hang Gliding, Bill Moyes fromAustralia,
who entered the inner circle of the esteemed Gold Air
Medal’s awardees. He signed the precious FAI Gold Book
as Charles Lindbergh, Steve Fossett andBertrand Piccard,
to mention a few, had done before him.
Outstandingskillsand inspiring talentscanalsobewitnessed
in our recordbreakers. In 2014we ratified 247 newRecords!
Over the years the Federation has gathered thousands
of record dossiers containing invaluable documents and
pictures. Wewill present themto the public through articles
and social media messages.
On a more technical note, all the records, awards,
competitions and new technologies have led to the creation
of a new database which will be gradually implemented in
2015. Accounting for such a complex Federation as ours
is not an easy task either, and it was a real satisfaction
to inaugurate a new and well-functioning consolidated
accountingsystem. Additionally, eachAir SportsCommission
now has a more detailed insight into the transactions
concerning them.
From my perspective, one of the highlights of the year
was certainly the awarding of the FAI World Air Games to
the United Arab Emirates. The 4th edition of the Games,
which will be the biggest ever multi air sports event, will
take place in Dubai in December 2015. It will include all
of our sports and will involve thousands of athletes and
volunteers. We can say already that this event is in good
hands, as the Organisers have all that it takes to host such
a large-scale competition: ultra-modern infrastructures,
state-of-the-art facilities and a beautiful landscape to
show our sports at their best. I would like to stress this
last point because organising the FAI World Air Games
Dubai 2015 will allow us to present our sports in a unique
urban environment; where people live, where peoplework.
Thanks to the easy and close access to the competition
sites, large crowds are expected to come and cheer our
athletes on. Furthermore, breath-taking videos and
pictures will be produced for the press, the TV channels
and the social media sites. I have high hopes that thrilling
competition, together with intensivemedia coverage, will
generate interest and enthusiasmwhich will spread wide
across the world. Ultimately, we want as many people as
possible to discover our sports and join the air sports
community. Don’t miss it!